Verizon Communications Inc.’s (VZ Quick QuoteVZ - Free Report) subsidiary, Verizon Business, has partnered with Mastercard (MA Quick QuoteMA - Free Report) to develop solutions that will transform the global payments industry.

5G is going to reshape the way we interact with each other — be it contactless shopping or cloud-based point of sale solutions.

To turn ideas into reality, Verizon and Mastercard have joined forces to develop an innovative solutions platform that will create new experiences for businesses and consumers.

The market leaders are working to unlock the power of IoT sensor connectivity with near real-time edge computing capabilities to drive the fintech, payments and banking industries forward.

The solutions will enable smartphones or other connected devices to seamlessly accept payment and unlock touchless retail shopping experiences. It will also create new ways to consume physical and digital goods and deliver digital capabilities for small and medium businesses.

Verizon will leverage Mastercard’s ‘Bill Pay Exchange’ real-time messaging network to enable enhanced communication between consumers and billers.

Verizon’s 5G technology, when combined with Mastercard’s expertise, is likely to create new uses cases and game-changing solutions in the evolution of commerce.

The telecom giant has built its 5G Ultra Wideband network to enable innovations that will support the changing behavior of customers. The 5G Ultra Wideband network supports a wide range of business and industrial applications.

Verizon’s disciplined network strategy for long-term sustainable growth is noteworthy. It expects to provide 5G Ultra Wideband service using C-band to 100 million people by the end of first-quarter 2022.

Verizon’s shares have inched up 1.9% in the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 5.9%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

A couple of better-ranked stocks in the broader industry are Nokia Corp. (NOK Quick QuoteNOK - Free Report) and Ooma, Inc. (OOMA Quick QuoteOOMA - Free Report) , both carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Nokia delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 215.2%, on average.

Ooma delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 65.5%, on average.