In order to grow efficiency, global technology body EMVCo has urged domestic payment systems to utilise its new EMV terminal integration testing framework.
The new integrations seek to reduce the time needed to get new and updated acceptance terminals live and operational.
It follows on from the firm’s launch of its new Level 3 (L3) Participant System Identifier (PSI) service. This allows domestic payment systems to include their own terminal integration testing requirements using an EMVCo pre-assigned identifier in an EMVCo qualified test tool, alongside those of the international payment systems, providing full testing synergy.
Bruce Rutherford, Chair of the EMVCo Executive Committee, stated: “The value and role of product testing cannot be underestimated as it brings technical stability and confidence to all stakeholders, but it can also be time-consuming and complex.
“As a community, we need to continually work to achieve the right balance between interoperability and innovation.”
Rutherford added: “By standardising the testing file formats and tool qualification in this manner, we improve the quality of the test tools, increase flexibility and consistency, and reduce time spent testing and certifying the integration of EMV terminals.
“This benefits the entire payment community – domestic and global payment systems, processors, merchants, test tool providers and test laboratories – and enables any interoperability issues to be quickly identified and resolved.”
The tools can be used to automate the selection and execution of applicable tests that confirm the integration of a new or upgraded (hardware and/or software) EMV payment or cash dispensing terminal with any merchant or bank system. This process supports end-to-end transaction acceptance testing before use.
The launch builds on feedback from the merchant and wider payment community to identify potential synergies to deliver a more streamlined integration testing experience. EMVCo revealed it has been working to address this balance and provide a common framework to enhance interoperability, reduce ambiguity and encourage automation through digital machine-readable testing files.
