In a first-of-its-kind event, Networld Media Group, parent company of ATM Marketplace and Mobile Payments Today, will host the ATM & Mobile Executive Summit, a conference dedicated to the examination of two interlinking technologies — the ATM and the smartphone.

"It really is this marriage of two what might seem like counterintuitive industries," said Networld Media Group president Tom Harper. "You've got ATMs and cash, and on the other hand you've got mobile payments and some people think mobile payments are actually replacing cash, [but] we've actually seen a convergence of the two."

The summit will take a detailed look at the issues, opportunities and implications arising from the juxtaposition of two very different, but connecting, financial services channels — one, ATMs, regulated extensively, the other, mobile payments, only minimally.

"In our research we've found that cash is actually growing in the United States and around the world," said Harper. "And it's not just growing, but growing at an increasing rate. Just a few years ago it was increasing at 3–4 percent. Last year it increased 6 percent. And with mobile payments exploding, it's almost counterintuitive."

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Harper said the summit will look at what's going on in the mobile, ATM and payment card sectors now, and how they will interact in the future. Additionally, he said, the event would seek to bring clarity to questions that many executives in banking, retail, legal affairs, the mobile hardware and wireless carrier sectors, and the ATM industry are asking now:

• Where is the mobile/ATM trend going?
• Which business models are working?
• Which technologies are most likely to succeed?
• Which technology and service providers will dominate?
• What are customer attitudes and adoption rates?
• How will the FDIC, the FCC, the SEC, the CFPB, lawmakers and others address regulatory concerns?

Presentations at the executives-only event will cover these and other issues around ATM and mobile convergence:

• Emerging technologies in ATM and mobile service channels
• New trends in mobile banking
• Expert analysis of the ATM industry in a mobile world
• Strategies for turning the underbanked into customers
• Global case studies on ATM/mobile convergence
• Perspectives from regulators and lawmakers on the Hill
• Regulatory activity that will affect ATM and mobile payment strategies
• Keys to dealing with new security issues and cyber threats

The speaker roster will include experts from the ATM and mobile payments worlds, as well as government officials, bank executives, regulators, security experts and other industry insiders. A full slate of speakers will be announced in upcoming weeks.

The two-day summit will be held September 25–26, 2013, (with a pre-conference reception on the evening of the 24th) at The Madison, a luxury hotel in the heart of Washington, D.C. — just a short stroll from the White House, Embassy Row, National Mall and Smithsonian Museums.

An early bird rate is available through May 10, and a special discount will offered to ATM Industry Association members, as well.

For more information or registration, visit the summit website.

Tom Harper, president of Networld Media Group spoke with Joseph Grove, executive editor of Networld, about summit topics, speakers and presentations. (Or watch a more in depth discussion about the event.) 

Read more at associations/conferences.