Associated Newspapers Limited has taken the prepaid public transit card idea and applied it to newspapers, allowing readers to tap their cards on electronic pads at newsstands, walking away with discounted newspapers, as well as reward points and even free iTunes.

The company's unveiling of the Evening Standard Eros Card is aimed to boost circulation of its evening daily Evening Standard, which competes against two free papers in London, as well as learn more about its readers. The Standard's current daily circulation is at about 270,000, including about one-third bulk sales, followthemedia.com reported Friday.

The cards will be given out for the first time next week, followthemedia.com reported.

The new system, in which readers can register and then “top-up” their cards on the Internet, would also allow the company to not only reward readers, but also to track them, enabling advertisers to better target readers, followthemedia.com reported. While newspapers sold by subscription can provide reader information, this would be the first time newsstand sales could identify customers beyond merely describing them as commuters.

The new payment system will give the Evening Standard, which is almost entirely sold via newsstands, the tools to identify its customers for the first time, and will also allow the paper to offer advertisers the new benefit of targeting consumers, which Associated Newspapers hopes will translate into increased ad sales.

“Over the next two years in London (the central area) will increasingly become a cashless payment zone and the Evening Standard will be helping drive and lead this trend,” Andrew Mullins, the Standard's managing director, is quoted by followthemedia.com as saying. “The Evening Standard Eros card is a genuine innovation. It not only provides greater convenience for our loyal readers but also appropriate added value benefit rewards.”

The Standard did not say how much of a discount the card will offer on each day's paper when it announced the new payment scheme this week.

The newspaper raised its price to 50 pence, from 40 pence, last year to fight the introduction of Rupert Murdoch's new free evening paper, thelondonpaper.