Mobile TOICA launched today (2026-03-17 JST) on Apple Wallet and Android Osaifu Keitai. Hosted on the JR West Mobile ICOCA platform that has been on Apple Pay since June 2023, […]
Mobile Payments - Mobile Transit
Dead Penguin: Suica 2026
What a Suica year. After all that pie in the sky 2024 Suica Renaissance marketing glitz, we should have known the ugly reality 2025 had in store for us when […]
Mobile Payments - Mobile Transit
New JR East teppay QR payment platform coming to Mobile Suica / PASMO Apps
JR East and PASMO announced a new payment platform called teppay that will be coming to Mobile Suica and Mobile PASMO starting in the fall of 2026. It builds on […]
Mobile Payments - Mobile Transit
JR East killing off Suica penguin character in 2026
2026 was supposed to be a celebration of all things Apple Pay Suica. Not only is 2026 the 25th anniversary of Suica and 20th anniversary of Mobile Suica, it’s also […]
Mobile Transit
JR Group online ticketing destination: collaboration, not integration
The recent JR Group announcement (JR East, JR Central, JR West, JR Kyushu) that their separate online ticket reservation systems (Eki-Net, EX, e5984, JR KYUSHU Train Reservation) would finally start […]
Mobile Transit
The Different expansion strategies of Suica and ICOCA
Sometimes there are advantages in being late to market. JR East Suica and JR West ICOCA are following different regional service expansion strategies with JR West leveraging their late arrival […]