• Results confirm that the demand for using cash online is up whilst credit card usage has dropped

• 71% of online customers want to pay for travel purchases more than anything else

London/Vienna 25th May 2009: The demand for online cash payments is on the rise in the UK as people are using their credit cards less this year compared to 2008. These findings are the result of a nationwide survey conducted by NEMS market research on behalf of Prepaid Services Company Ltd., a market leader in alternative online payment methods.

"We knew about the high demand for alternative payment methods from former market research," explains David Hunter, CEO of Prepaid Services Company Ltd. "With this survey we wanted to see if the situation had changed since we started developing our latest product, Cash-Ticket."

The survey shows that 28% of the 500 people asked say that they are using their credit card much less or not at all in 2009 compared to last year - as opposed to just 7% who say that they use their credit card more often. One in three of all the people asked (34%) said that they would use cash online if it were as easy as doing so over the counter.

David Hunter believes a contributing factor is the current economic situation and the fact that people are becoming increasingly cautious with their money. "Obviously some changes have taken place in the past months," he says, "and if people are wary about using cards online for whatever reason, be it safety from fraud or simply because they want to monitor their online spending, they should have other options."

Another notable result from the survey is the fact that woman appear to have become far more disinclined to use their cards in contrast to men. 31% of women have either reduced their credit cards spending or stopped it entirely as opposed to 24% of men who have done the same. The results also indicate the industries in which customers would prefer to spend their money when shopping online.

In total, 68% of those who have access to the Internet said they'd buy flights and 71% would use it for travel, suggesting that these industries in particular have a lot of room for alternative payment methods. "The figures show that the number of people looking to benefit from bargains only offered on the Internet, such as buying air tickets from low cost airlines, is increasing," David Hunter said of the results. "We choose to operate in travel and other retail industries simply because it's where people want to shop. Allowing people to pay in cash for the things they want to purchase online means everybody benefits, the retailer and the customer."

About Cash-Ticket: Cash-Ticket is the new product from Prepaid Services Company Ltd. The prepaid voucher allows consumers to purchase flights, ticket orders and online shopping without having to provide personal bank details. When paying at a web-shop all that is required is the 16 digit pin code. Prepaid Services Company Ltd. is a subsidiary of paysafecard group, who already operate in 16 European countries with offices in Vienna, London and Bern. Founded in 2000, the company is one of the leading providers for alternative payment solutions and in March 2009 was awarded by Paybefore for being the ‘Best Prepaid Company outside the USA'.

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Ludger Voetz
Tel: +44 20 7297 3314
E-Mail: ludger@braun-pr.com