Getting started

LINK Mobility's payment integration platform API consists of a set of functions that you can use to:

• Request payment from a Mobile user and allow the user to choose payment method (Phone/SMS or Card).
• Initiate transactions directly when you already know the payment method.
• See transaction status and billing information.
• Define your own callback URL's for receiving status information.
• Define your own URL's for user navigation and landingpages.

Before you can start using the API, you will receive 2 pieces of information that will be provided by LINK Mobility:

1. A Company identification number.
2. A secret key. (Important: This key is highly confidential and you must keep it secure at all times!)

If you want to accept Card payment, you will also need a Merchant account (see below).

How it works

1. Your server generates a HMAC authentication header (See Authentication)
2. You send an HTTP Request to the API method of your choice, including the HMAC signature in the request.
3. The LINK Mobility server receives your request and processes it.
4. The response from LINK Mobility is returned in JSON or XML format.

Before you can start using the API, you will receive 2 pieces of information that will be provided by LINK Mobility:

1. A Company identification number.
2. A secret key. (Important: This key is highly confidential and you must keep it secure at all times!)

If you want to accept Card payment, you will also need a Merchant account (see below).

Typical Flow of a Credit Card Payment

What is a merchant account?

The merchant account is basically an online bank account that will temporarily hold your money (you are the merchant) until it is moved into your actual bank account. After a successful sale, money will be transferred into your merchant account and it will sit there for a predefined period of time, then, in most cases, it will automatically be transferred into your bank account – the one that you actually think of as your bank account where you withdraw funds and so forth. You can sort of think of your merchant account as a temporary holding tank for the money that comes in from online sales. LINK Mobility can help you get started with merchant accounts depending on the type of payments you want to accept. If you only need Mobile Subscription billing, a merchant account with LINK Mobility will be provided. If you also want to support credit card payment, you will need an external merchant account and provide LINK Mobility with your Merchant account information. LINK Mobility can assist you with acquiring a merchant account.

What is a Payment Gateway?

A Payment Gateway is the service that processes credit card or mobile phone billing transactions for you. When your customers are buying something, they enter their payment information (like credit card number) during the checkout process. The Payment Gateway is responsible for authorizing the transaction and processing the payment. In case of Card payment, if the credit card information submitted to the payment gateway matches the information on file with the credit card company and the charge is approved, the payment gateway will then transfer the money from your customers credit card into your merchant account. In the case of Phone billing, the system submits the payment request to the user's mobile operator, and if the user has sufficient funds on their subscription, the user will receive an SMS receipt that the funds have been deducted. The money from all the SMS transactions will be transferred to your bank account from LINK Mobility once a month.

The LINK Payment system is integrated with several payment gateways, and is continually expanding your options. Currently you can choose between the following:

• Credit/Debet card payments.
• Mobile phone subscription billing via premium SMS
  

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