Epic Lanka to revitalise Sri Lanka’s POS landscape with Android Terminal Experience Management Hub

COVID-19, a plague that is here to stay for some time, has affected every individual and business in unexpected ways. In Sri Lanka, the arrival of COVID-19 has sent shockwaves across the country, sending everyone into a state of anxiety and nervousness. It is unclear as to how long the pandemic will last; businesses across all industries must be flexible and agile in their service deliveries. Many companies have listened to the market, taken a few risks, and used COVID-19 as the main propeller to inject new growth in several sectors or to revive dormant potential in others.

It is a fact that Sri Lankans have always been heavily reliant on physical cash. The inability to get access to physical cash presently due to social distancing has pushed citizens to look to cashless alternatives. With citizens adopting and exploring the convenience that shopping online has to offer, every merchant, small or large, is facilitating doorstep deliveries. A large number of the population has now become heavily reliant on the services of various vendors who have card-on-delivery facilities. 

As payments through POS (Point of Sales), m-POS (mobile POS), and QR become more prevalent, the risk of cyber fraud increases as well. Android has the largest number of users in the mobile operating system space making it more prone to cyber-attacks such as data thefts, hacking, spying, etc. As POS terminals transact sensitive information where the integrity of data is of utmost concern, banks and financial service providers need to consider the fatality of a possible cyber-attack and take the necessary precautions so that transactions can be processed with greater confidence. 

In such a context, Epic Lanka – Sri Lanka’s pioneer in developing cutting-edge FinTech solutions – has amassed yet another ‘first’ to its name by introducing the Android Terminal Experience Management (ATEM) Hub, the world’s first state-of-the-art tool that operates as a holistic, secure and an integrated suite of modules to transcend the value of Android-based Smart POS ecosystem. The newest addition to its already impressive range of award-winning payment solutions, the ATEM Hub is designed to deliver terminal manufacturers/suppliers,aggregators, banks, and merchants an unparalleled one-stop platform for all their terminal management and operational requirements.

An unparalleled one-stop platform 

Android-based POS Terminals have been the preferred next-generation payment devices for many considering the low price tag it comes with, in contrast to the traditional ‘C’ language-driven Electronic Data Capture/Point of Sale (EDC/POS) Terminals. It is a known fact that the latter has dominated the market since its advent from the early 1980s. However, it is time to realise that it has ultimately reached its saturation point in the POS Terminal space and is being pushed into the docket of a deteriorating market segment.

The standardisation and modernisation of platforms governing the Android-based POS Terminals have been a non-existent scenario in the world. The reason is that the focus has mainly been in the area of creating value through Android application development on these terminals without a proper governance structure on how such terminals can be effectively utilised in the long run while fulfilling other business cases. This is where Epic’s ATEM Hub steps in with a goal to maximise the ROI while enabling our valued clientele and their partners to change their status quo and grasp a competitive advantage in today’s digital economy. Promising to be an all-inclusive, one-stop platform providing unmatched experiences, the plethora of innovative features embedded within Epic’s ATEM Hub is set to revolutionise the banking and financial services landscape both nationally and internationally. The platform is entirely terminal agnostic and as a result, supports virtually any terminal brand and any terminal model. Given that the underlying terminal operating system is Android, it creates a standardisation platform that is unique for this solution.

The modular nature of this tool allows it to be deployed globally with minimal changes, and the agility of the design will enable it to be finely customised according to the client’s requirement while ensuring flexible deployment configurations.

Ultra-modern terminal management experience with push and pull capabilities

ATEM Hub offers a whole new systematic means of managing your entire terminal fleet. With this sophisticated Terminal Network Management System (TNMS) module, governing all the terminal-related operations and tracking of the terminal devices will not be a headache anymore. One can examine the different facets of the terminal ecosystem in regards to different merchant customers, merchant location points, countries, regions, institutions, etc. accurately.

“With remote terminal profiling options in place, you can alter the fundamental behaviour of the terminals and terminal-specific configurations remotely, thus driving real-time changes, operations, and services on the terminal-end for better manageability. Moreover, you can also monitor the heart-beat of the terminals at your comfort, which functions as a course of preventive maintenance activity and assures high quality of service to the retailers/merchants,” said Epic Lanka Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer and Chief Payment Solutions Architect Viraj Mudalige.

He further added, “With novel innovations like the Push and Pull feature, it mitigates the hassle of commuting and visiting the merchant outlets physically for the resolution of any terminal related issues and application updates. All terminal parameters, scripts, applications, enhancements, patches, new O/S version updates, and auto settlement triggers can be seamlessly pushed to the terminals remotely. Similarly, insights from the terminals such as terminal serial number, IMEI number, model, battery level, signal strength, SIM serial number, terminal paper roll status, etc. can be pulled remotely.”

Compelling value creation and unique experience for retailers/merchants

The retailers/merchants can benefit from a Web Portal from which they can keep an eye on their entire terminal base and download the receipts (along with the signatures) applicable to the transactions associated with their Merchant Identification Number. Further, it monitors transactions, forecasts earned revenue, generates transactional reports, raises inquiries/complaints/service requests, and follows up its progress.

Superior Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Experience

A CRM module catering to the dynamic needs of the banking and financial services sector also forms part of the Android Terminal Experience Management Hub. It is purpose-built for incident management functions to cater to call centre and support personnel. Whether it is about raising an inquiry, complaint, or servicing a request and subsequently analysing, monitoring, and following-up for its progress, this tailor-made CRM does the job. It also comes with an escalation matrix which notifies the authorised individuals of unattended tickets (within the defined SLA) in the organisation hierarchy. You can also track the history of each breakdown/new service ticket throughout its lifecycle with the actions taken by individuals assigned to the respective task.

Paperless operation

With the integrated Digital Receipt Repository, transaction details and signature data are electronically transmitted and stored digitally for quick retrieval and verification purposes by banks and retailers/merchants. This paperless experience significantly streamlines the merchant’s operational process. Requesting sales slips to process card chargebacks can now be done within minutes.

Comprehensive monitoring, dashboarding, and alerting experience

The web-based GUI monitoring and dashboarding component for NOC personnel graphically illustrates all vital processes and parameters such as system status snapshot, server status, functioning node, transaction processing time monitoring, channel(s) connectivity status, listener(s) connectivity status, transaction traffic status, exception alerts, and error count. The option of configuring the SMS/Email Gateway is also catered to trigger notifications and system health alerts via SMSs and Emails.

All-inclusive application marketplace to drive business agility, growth, and collaboration 

The Application Marketplace governs all proprietary and authorised third-party applications as well as other utilities. It can feature a range of applications and services developed by third-party app developers for multi-merchant and multi-domain setups – everything ranging from increasing productivity to streamlining business operations, thereby expanding the traditional POS terminal business.

Cutting-edge security experience

The ATEM Hub is fortified with top-of-the-line security to ensure every interaction is safe. The embedded security features comply with and conform to various international standards and architectures. The built-in robust security framework is certified with the Payment Application Data Security Standard (PA-DSS) version 3.2 guidelines and specifications – the highest acclaimed security standard governed by the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) for software vendors developing secure payment applications.

“For electronic payments based on request/response messages, this security layer operates as a comprehensive communication channel encryption framework that provides the cushion to safeguard against all forms of wiretapping attacks and threats that originate as a result of unsecured communication channels from the terminal to the bank’s card host. It also encompasses a terminal key utility component with Remote Key Loading (RKL) capabilities,” Mudalige noted.