Interactivity and Live Video Come to Canadian ATMs

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Interactivity and Live Video Come to Canadian ATMs
2012-08-29
Don’t be surprised if you strike up a conversation the next time you hit the banking machine – with the machine, that is!
Interactive banking and teller machines now use mediacasting technologies to connect a customer with a live teller who can guide the user through machine-based transactions.
Services offered include deposits, withdrawals, cheque cashing, loan payments, cash advances, and booking appointments with branch staff.
FirstOntario Credit Union, based in Hamilton, ON says it’s the first Canadian financial institution to deploy the APTRA Interactive Teller from NCR which enables customers to talk live to a remote teller at the ATM.
The company says that two-way video conferencing integrated within the ATM will let FirstOntario’s members talk to and see a teller who can remotely drive the ATM transaction from a central location, guiding members through typical in-branch transaction via the ATM screen.
“FirstOntario introduced the first ‘Personal Assisted Tellers’ (PAT) in Canada two years ago and with NCR we’re offering another first to our members. We pride ourselves on personal service and we wanted to bring that to the ATM to allow our members to get instant personal service when they want it,” said Dave Schurman, executive vice president and chief operating officer, FirstOntario. “It expands our services and hours of operation, and enhances the functionality at the ATM by allowing members to conduct most of the transactions they would do in the branch right at the ATM screen with a live teller still driving the transaction for the member.”
‘PATs’ are located at six FirstOntario locations and also will be available at four other locations by the end of the year. NCR APTRA Interactive Teller was launched last year in the U.S. and is now available to all Canadian financial institutions who want to offer round-the-clock banking services to time-strapped clients.
So-called intelligent deposit will also soon be available in Canada – it’s described as a no-envelope technology that lets customers deposit cheques and cash directly into the ATM and receive instant reconciliation via a receipt that includes images of the items they deposited.
“Financial institutions in Canada are under pressure to improve front-end productivity in their branches, freeing up staff to improve service delivery and generation. They’re competing for more revenue and consumer loyalty, while reducing operational costs,” said Linda Fitzgerald, president, NCR Canada. “NCR is working with banks and credit unions in Canada and around the world to reinvent the customer experience, deepen their relationship with clients, strengthen their competitive advantage and drive revenue by offering innovative products and services like APTRA Interactive Teller.”
NCR introduced APTRA Interactive Teller in the U.S. in 2011, in partnership with uGenius Technologies, a Utah-based pioneer in video banking solutions. The solution is currently being used by a number of U.S. financial institutions. NCR APTRA Interactive Teller runs on APTRA Activate software.
FirstOntario operates 21 full service branches and two satellite branches serving 13 communities across the Hamilton, Halton, Niagara, Haldimand/Norfolk and Oxford regions; membership at FirstOntario is open to anyone.
NCR is headquartered in Duluth, Georgia.
Media Mayor Inc.
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