Barclays launches Pingit mobile-to-mobile payments

I'm with "fenemore". £15 year is about my annual mobile cost. Just love it when cold callers want to save me money on mobile costs. "We can do blah de blah for £10 a month". Yes, but can you do it for £1.25 a month ? Soon shuts them up. When I'm out of the house, do I really need to speak to someone remotely via a phone, only very, very rarely, and most of this App stuff does seem so superfluous to one's real needs in life.

I hope they make app for the Windows Phone as well. Why would I want it? Simply, because I hate cash. Cash is money taken out of circulation, out of accounts into a "pocket", are more difficult to remember where they have gone (the rest of transactions leave electronic trace), don't bring any interest, can be taken from you at a knife point, can be lost. I hate touching dirty paper/tissue pieces, I hate coins that some people are stupid enough to throw into rubbish or put into CoinMaster losing 7.9%. I hate how £10 disappears in a blink, even if you bought just a choco bar and a coke. I hate parking machines not giving you changes on stupid pretenses that storing coins is dangerous. I hate gimmick jars "round it up to the next pound". I hate impulse unnecessary purchases which are so easier to make using cash. Nice and simple, I hate cash with my guts. So whatever allows me to pay the exact sum, out of my live account, never touching tissue and metal, pay just the sum and not "round to next pound", easily trace it later in my bank account statement - hurray, bring it on.

Andrewjameshowar - it costs nothing. Apparently some phone networks may charge for the internet access/usage, but you'd pay for that anyway, whether you were using Pingit or accessing online banking, surfing the web, downloading music etc. Most contracts have some level of internet usage built in, so I'd expect most folk won't notice an increase in cost. electricblue - No small minded generalisations in there at all, you're obviously such a step forward for mankind with your well considered and balanced opinions on others and your not-so-modest opinion of yourself. What would we do without you? As for the actual technology - why not? Customers have such diverse and different lifestyles, finding new and innovative ways for people to manage their money at their convenience surely can't be a bad thing? If it has no relevance in your life, so be it, but if others can make use of it, I'm all for it. My mother in law doesn't own a TV, she sees no need, does that mean I shouldn't have one either? Yes, this new transfer service may encounter fraud issues, that's the problem with our modern world, whenever we use new and innovative ways to protect ourselves, someone is always devising ways and means to undermine it. Once again, should we do away with new services such as the "Pingit" because fraudsters may target it? I still use a debit card despite having fraudsters attempt to abuse it in the past. You can't always live life looking over your shoulder. I personally think it's a step forward and should be embraced.