[img_assist|nid=17087|title=|desc=|link=popup|align=left|width=150|height=92]Online travel retailer redspottedhanky.com has selected mTicketing tech firm Masabi to provide its mobile ticketing service. The service is offered as an app for iPhone, Android, Blackberry and Nokia smartphones, with a Windows Phone 7 version launching soon.

Using the app, travellers can search for train times, buy tickets and earn loyalty points for any route in the UK, with displayable mTickets available on certain routes, eliminating the need for many passengers to use ticket machines.

Customers can quickly and easily search for and buy train tickets and earn loyalty points without paying any booking fees – repeat purchases are even faster, requiring only a few key presses. mTickets are supported on certain routes, such as the Chiltern Railways network, in the form of 2D barcodes. Where mTickets are not available, customers can collect their tickets using a booking reference number at most UK rail stations.

The application also has the option to link purchases to the users web account, giving them a single place to view all purchases, or print out receipts for expenses claims. All transactions are secured using Masabis US government certified, encryptME security system that will ultimately support phone-based contactless technology, such as NFC, once it is widely available on handsets.

“As more and more consumers opt to travel by rail, there is a need to find new ways to sell tickets without necessarily expanding every station. This application allows consumers to completely bypass ticket machines, making their journeys as effortless and enjoyable as possible, from buying the ticket to boarding the train,” says Masabi chief product officer, Giacomo Biggiero. “We are extremely pleased to be working with forward-thinking online rail ticket vendors like redspottedhanky.com in bringing this innovative service to the public.”

For a link to download the app, text REDSPOT to 86688.