Mastercard Launches Augmented Reality Experience to Bring Card Benefits to Life

Mastercard unveiled at CES 2020 a new augmented reality (AR) app that lets cardholders see, explore and access the benefits of their Mastercard. The industry-first card benefits app delivers a photorealistic AR experience that transports users to a 360-degree virtual environment, where a series of interactive portals brings their card benefits back to life.

According to the J.D. Power 2018 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study, rewards continue to drive consumer satisfaction with cards, yet only a third of credit card holders completely understand all the benefits available to them. Using augmented reality, the new Mastercard app puts benefit information front and center for cardholders in a fully immersive experience that can be easily accessed with their mobile device.

“At Mastercard, we’re using our technology and solutions to deliver multi-sensory experiences for consumers every day – whether they’re shopping, taking transit, or exploring the card benefits they care about,” said Raja Rajamannar, chief marketing and communications officer at Mastercard. “By leveraging an intuitive AR design, cardholders can now easily find and fully explore their benefits that otherwise might have been overlooked.”

How it works:

•  Upon launching the app, cardholders will be prompted to scan their Mastercard to start the session.
•  Using their phone to scan the area around them, cardholders will see three portals, each one representing one of the three categories that Mastercard benefits fall into: Experiences, Everyday Value and Peace of Mind.
•  To explore a a benefit area, cardholders can tap the related portal to launch a fully immersive 360-degree experience which brings that are to life. For example, Peace of Mind is represented by a spa, and Everyday Value is a stylish home.
• Once inside, cardholders can use their phone to look around the virtual room and discover their benefits – each represented by a relevant item. For example, tapping on a set of golf clubs prompts a pop-up screen where a user can learn about and access their Priceless Golf benefits.
• When finished exploring, users can simply tap to exit the portal turn.

The app will be available in the App Store (for iPhones) in the U.S. in Q2 2020, with additional regional and device availability coming later in the year. The technology can be white labeled for Mastercard’s issuing partners, creating customized experiences for their cardholders.