CHICAGO, Illinois – April 26, 2021 – SP Plus Corporation (SP+), (Nasdaq: SP), a leading provider of technology-driven mobility solutions for aviation, commercial, hospitality and institutional clients throughout North America, announced the successful implementation of its Sphere Commerce™ On Demand technology to help gateless parking facilities transition to offering touchless, flexible payment options.
SP+ introduced Sphere Commerce™ On Demand as one of its flagship products marketed under the company’s Sphere™ technology brand which launched in 2020. To date, nearly 400 gateless parking facilities across the United States and Canada have already started the transition to Sphere Commerce™ On Demand, which was designed to allow daily parkers the option to bypass a pay station, parking equipment or personnel to pay quickly and securely with their own smartphone or device.
“Touchless and frictionless payment options are in high demand from consumers and our clients who rely on us for mobility, transportation and parking services. The Sphere™ technology suite is designed to not only meet today’s needs, but to adapt to future needs of our ever-changing industry, changing consumer behaviors in mobility and ultimately digital trends,” said Jeff Eckerling, Chief Growth Officer at SP+.
Parking locations using Sphere Commerce™ On Demand technology by SP+ are set up to process payments via Parking.com, SP+’s consumer sales platform. The company’s in-house digital information and product technology teams built and deployed Parking.com applications using Amazon Web Services (AWS) and its comprehensive set of cloud capabilities. AWS’ global infrastructure offers proven reliability, scalability, and availability to meet the dynamic needs of a multi-faceted industry and fluctuating market demands.
“SP+ recognized a growing demand for touchless services and by building on AWS they were able to quickly roll out a solution to meet that demand. SP+’s deployment of its Sphere™ brand of technologies represents an effective use of AWS to incorporate data analytics and business intelligence with reliable functionality and security features—presented as a world-class, industry-leading customer experience,” commented David Peller, Managing Director, Travel Hospitality at Amazon Web Services. “It’s what’s next for the touchless customer experience.”
Customers have multiple payment choices via mobile apps, including Apple or Android or simply paying by text, scan, QR code or through the Parking.com website option. Parkers also have the option to create an account to expedite subsequent transactions by capturing and storing payment and license plate information.
Locations using Sphere Commerce™ On Demand are supported by a comprehensive signage package to guide customers through the touchless, user-friendly payment process. Signage features information needed to easily complete a transaction, including zone numbers, codes to scan, text numbers and more.
Plus, the system interacts seamlessly with other Sphere™ technology products, including automated enforcement via license plate recognition.
“The Sphere Commerce™ On Demand platform offers the flexibility that consumers need in order to choose how they pay, while allowing our clients to optimize their revenue potential without adding expensive parking equipment or operational costs,” added Eckerling.
