We’ve partnered with InComm the pioneer in the distribution of prepaid product in the retail channel to drive more consumer and retailer value from gift cards. Read below for more details.

Integration of the Web’s Largest Gift Card Exchange and a Leader in Prepaid Products Underscores Strength of the Secondary Gift Card Market.

SAN MATEO, CA–(Marketwire – Feb 9, 2012) - Plastic Jungle, the web’s largest secured gift card exchange, and InComm, an industry leading marketer, distributor and technology innovator of stored-value gift and prepaid products, today announced an integrated partnership to drive more consumer and merchant value from gift cards.

Plastic Jungle and InComm plan to integrate their respective processing platforms, which will allow gift card issuers the ability to access Plastic Jungle’s rapidly growing consumer base through the web as well as through other electronic and mobile channels the parties are developing. The partnership will also extend Plastic Jungle’s patent-pending platform capability to InComm’s vast gift card partner base, including gaming, restaurants and traditional merchants. It will allow gift card merchants the ability to ensure their gift cards are used in full, and will also allow them to accept a broad range of prepaid and digital currencies.

“We pioneered our industry in partnership with the merchant community and are delighted to team up with a like-minded pioneer in the distribution business like InComm,” said Bruce Bower, CEO of Plastic Jungle. “We believe this partnership signals the potential of the secondary gift card market and will propel the industry forward. We are looking forward to the positive impact this integration will have on both consumers’ and merchants’ experiences.”

“InComm recognizes that the secondary market in gift cards is growing quickly and represents a new way for merchants to increase the profitability of their gift card programs,” said Brooks Smith, President and CEO of InComm. “Our relationship with Plastic Jungle will help merchants get gift cards into the hands of the people who value them most — thereby driving real traffic and loyal customers to our partners’ businesses. We’re excited to partner with the innovative team at Plastic Jungle and combine our strengths to take the gift card industry to the next level.”

About InComm:
InComm is an industry leading marketer, distributor and technology innovator of stored-value gift and prepaid products using its state-of-the-art point-of-sale transaction technology and payment solutions to revolutionize retail product sales and customer experiences. With more than $13 billion in retail sales transactions processed in 2010, InComm is the nation’s largest provider of gift cards, prepaid wireless products, reloadable debit cards, digital music downloads, content, games, software and bill payment solutions. InComm partners with consumer brand leaders around the world to provide more than 225,000 retail locations the products and services their customers demand. Since 1992, InComm’s patented technologies have made the buying process easier for consumers, while streamlining the selling process for product and retail partners. InComm is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia with offices in Australia/New Zealand, Brazil, Canada, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Minnesota, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah and Wisconsin. To learn more about InComm, visit www.incomm.com or call (800) 352-3084.

Secondary Gift Card Economy Sees Significant Growth in 2010

Plastic Jungle Reports Exponential Surge in Holiday Business and Consumer Trends Toward Electronic Payouts

SAN JOSE, CA–(Marketwire – January 20, 2011) – New data released today reveals that as the gift card economy continues to grow, consumers are increasingly looking to buy and sell previously-issued gift cards. The data, released by Plastic Jungle, the web’s largest secured gift card exchange, shows that consumers are now using secondary gift card marketplaces more than ever to extend their purchasing power and receive extra value at their favorite merchants.

Merchant-issued — or closed loop — gift cards now represent $90 billion of the U.S. economy. An estimated $30 billion in gift cards are unredeemed at any given time. Plastic Jungle helps consumers get the most value out of gift cards by allowing them to sell unredeemed gift cards for up to 92% of the gift card value, buy gift cards at their favorite stores for savings up to 30%, or donate the value of their unused cards to their favorite cause. Plastic Jungle has also enabled users to exchange gift cards for payment value which can be used at the millions of merchants that accept PayPal and for virtual currency which can be used at thousands of online games on social networks, such as Facebook.

During the 2010 calendar year, Plastic Jungle reports that gift card value sold on the website exceeded $10 million, an increase of 5 times over 2009.

“We are pleased to see that users are beginning to fully realize the extra value potential in gift cards,” said Bruce Bower, CEO of Plastic Jungle. “This holiday season was a perfect example of the growing popularity in buying and selling gift cards, and we know we helped Plastic Jungle users stretch their holiday dollars further.” During the 2010 holiday season, Plastic Jungle saw huge upticks in traffic and delivered nearly 6 times the gift card sales volume over the same period in 2009. Additionally, registered users nearly doubled in Q4 2010.

Plastic Jungle’s innovations have also sparked an increased interest in alternative payouts, and especially in electronic payouts. Plastic Jungle’s newly launched PayPal application on the Plastic Jungle website allows customers to sell their gift cards and to have funds quickly transferred into their PayPal account. In the two weeks following the December 23 launch, nearly one third of Plastic Jungle’s payout volume was processed into users’ PayPal accounts.

“Third-party developers like Plastic Jungle have truly harnessed the possibilities for payments innovation, and we’re pleased that PayPal users are responding enthusiastically to the application on the Plastic Jungle website,” said Damon Hougland, PayPal’s senior director of PayPal X. “We look forward to seeing even more PayPal users benefit and recapture the money often left idle in their gift cards.”

During the same two week period following the PayPal application launch, Plastic Jungle users took advantage of additional electronic payout options on the website; the share of Amazon.com Gift Card payout transactions jumped by nearly 30 percent.

For the 2010 calendar year, gift cards for big-box and department stores were the most transacted. Walmart proved to be the most popular card, followed by Home Depot, Target, Macy’s and iTunes. During the 2010 holiday season, Walmart was again the most popular card, followed by Macy’s, Sears, iTunes and Home Depot. Electronic representations of gift cards — or eCodes — represented more than 20 percent of total Plastic Jungle sales during the holiday season.

Plastic Jungle improves efficiency in the merchant issued gift cards market by redistributing gift cards to their highest and best use, taking gift cards from less productive consumers and selling them to a merchant’s most enthusiastic customer set.

Read the press release on Marketwire:  Secondary Gift Card Economy Sees Significant Growth in 2010

About Plastic Jungle
Plastic Jungle (www.plasticjungle.com) is the web’s largest secured gift card exchange, giving consumers the choice and flexibility to convert their gift cards into other forms of spending power — including cash, online balances to use for purchases at the millions of merchants that accept PayPal, Facebook Credits, and more — and to stretch their shopping dollars at their favorite merchants. Plastic Jungle’s patent-pending marketplace and payment applications aim to safely unlock the estimated $30 billion in unredeemed gift cards trapped in the economy for the benefit of consumers and merchants alike. Based in San Jose, California, the company is privately held, with venture backing from Shasta Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, Jafco Ventures, First Round Capital, Bay Partners, Harrison Metal and Western Technology Investment.