Cadbury Schweppes web-enables 5,000 soda pop vending machines

Saving its customers the trouble of fumbling for change, Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages is web-enabling about 5,000 vending machines that dispense Dr. Pepper, 7 Up, Snapple and other soft drinks in several major cities to accept Internet-based credit card payments.

“At Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages we are dedicated not only to creating brands people love, but also to seeking better ways to get those brands in the hands of our consumers,” says Mark Jackson, vice president of the company’s Cold Drink Equipment & Equity unit. “Convenience is a driving factor in consumer purchasing decisions and credit cards are becoming a preferred method of payment for purchases at all price levels, even those under $5. The e-Port cashless transaction solution makes purchasing our popular soft drinks, teas and juices from our vending machines easier and more convenient than ever.”

Cadbury is deploying in its vending machines the e-Port web-based payment application from USA Technologies, which costs about $500 per unit and can be easily plugged into virtually any electronic vending machine, a USA Technologies spokeswoman says. The original e-Port application was designed to accept magnetic stripe credit cards, but the new G6 version deployed by Cadbury also accepts contactless radio-frequency payment devices from major credit card companies, she adds.

Cadbury recently started deploying e-Port in 1,000 vending machines in Dallas, New York and Chicago, and expects to soon include a total of 5,000 machines in 12 cities.

USA Technologies already has deployed e-Port in about 9,000 vending machines throughout the U.S. selling items such as ice cream, sunglasses and CDs as well as beverages. It also has deployed a related product, e-Suds, in about 5,000 commercial washing machines and driers in laundry rooms at some 25 college campuses.

Both e-Port and e-Suds are backed by web site administration capabilities. Owners of e-Port vending machines can log onto a password-protected web site provided by USA Technologies to check sales and inventory records for each of their machines. Owners of e-Suds laundry machines also can log onto a web page to check usage and sales by machine, and their customers can log onto the web to check for availability of an open machine in a particular laundry room and arrange to receive an e-mail alert when their laundry cycle is done.