Mastercard unveils plans to launch Priceless Experiences voice assistant
Cannes, FRANCE – June 16 2019 – No exciting plans this weekend? No problem! Today, Mastercard announces it’s first-ever voice skill for smart speakers: the Priceless Experiences skill. With 75 percent of US households expected to own at least one smart speaker by 2020[1], and with 74 percent of Americans prioritizing experiences over products[2], Mastercard has developed the skill as a go-to resource for unique experiences in your home city or while traveling.
Available exclusively to Mastercard cardholders, Priceless Experiences offers access to unforgettable activities in the cities where you live and travel. Whether you’re looking for memorable experiences while vacationing or you want a special encounter closer to home, as a cardholder, you can now access experiences through your Alexa-enabled or Google smart speaker, as well as through Priceless.com.
The skill, which will be available this summer, will allow users to hear about a wide variety of experiences available in cities including New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Boston and Chicago, simply by asking their speaker to “Open Priceless Experiences.” Smart speaker owners will know the skill has activated thanks to the immediate chime of the Mastercard sonic melody. Content for cities outside the U.S. is expected in 2020.
“Voice is the next frontier of search and retail. Sound-and in this case the Priceless Experiences skill marked by the Mastercard sonic brand-is a powerful way for us to create a culturally-relevant and emotional connection with consumers,” said Raja Rajamannar, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Mastercard.
The digital age continues to transform the way we live, shop and pay-hundreds of millions of people are already using smart speakers, and voice shopping alone is set to hit $40 billion by 2022.
Priceless experiences include touring a private art collection in Miami’s Design District, dining at the chef’s table at a famous LA restaurant and visiting the world’s first urban rooftop vineyard. As Mastercard builds out the skill for global use, it will continue to add experiences such as going behind the scenes at the Forbidden City palace complex in Beijing or getting VIP tickets to The BRIT Awards.
“Mobile, desktop and voice are now the core digital interfaces. As usage grows, consumers will expect anything that is available digitally can be accessed with their smart speakers,” said Wilson Standish, Director of Voice, Gimlet. “We are thrilled to work with Mastercard in finding a way to make Priceless Experiences accessible in this audio-first medium.”
So, if you’re not sure what to do on the weekend or looking for help planning an adventure on your next vacation, simply ask Amazon Alexa or the Google Assistant to “Open Priceless Experiences” and start something priceless.
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