In the UK, the 5 big mobile phone service providers have launched, PayForIt, a payment system that turns handsets into digital wallets for buying goods and services with a value of up to £10 (€ 15). It is hoped to raise trust in using the handset as a payment tool and is expected to be used to pay for ringtones, train tickets, parking fees and eventually as a payment system on web shops and sites. It also has a credit function for billed customers (as opposed to pay-as-you-go) because payments are automatically be added on to a customer’s phone bill. The scheme standardises the way phones can be used to make payments so the process is the same no matter which operator a customer has signed up for or which handset they are using.
Companies such as I-play, Gameloft, EA, Multimap, SonyEricsson and Samsung have become the first to sign up and let people pay using the PayForIt system.
Hopefully the banks and credit card issuers will get involved too, though security will no doubt be of increasing importance.
Comments