NSW Transport spends $1.1m on Opal app from Outware

Transport for NSW is spending over $1 million with Outware Mobile to overhaul the Opal Card mobile app.

The Melbourne-based software developer, which has appeared in the past three CRN Fast50 awards, won the $1.1 million gig to build version 2 of the transport app after successfully building the Opal Revenue Protection App (ORPA) for Transport for NSW in April 2015.

ORPA, which is used by transport officers, has helped reduce fare evasion from 11 percent in 2012 to 5.2 percent in May 2015, a department spokesperson told CRN.

With ORPA, Outware proved its "strong understanding of functional security and privacy and an ability to deliver mobile applications along an iterative pathway" said the spokesperson.

The ORPA app uses near-field communication technology in Android phones to allow some 150 transport officers to catch fare-dodgers while replacing the need for an additional portable reader. Outware also used NFC for the Visa SmartPass app, bringing PayWave technology Android smartphones.

The department would not reveal who developed version 1 of the Opal app, but Outware's pedigree would have helped seal the deal for version 2 , given the company developed high-profile apps such as Coles Mobile Wallet, the AFL Live app, Seek and ANZ Grow.

The current Opal app has had around 500,000 downloads.

An Outware spokesperson said the company is "focused on working to deliver the app to market at the right time. Information on the project and app will be made available when it goes to market."

Outware Mobile was established in 2006. The company placed No.20 in the 2015 CRN Fast50 after growing 67.46 percent to reach $15.5 million in revenue.