Samsung is in talks with other Android-based phone makers to support its mobile payment service Samsung Pay, according to Gadgets 360. Samsung is reportedly keen to offer the service by 2018. However, for now, the electronics major has refrained from any official announcement.
How Samsung’s mobile payment service is better
Samsung’s mobile payment service dramatically reduces the need to carry a physical card. It also eliminates the need for a card swipe in the credit/ debit card machine, as the smartphone is integrated with MST chips, a technology that replicates a card swipe by sending magnetic radiation to make the payment.
Samsung Pay has already made sure that it is unhackable by adding military-grade data storage. Even if the phone is stolen or compromised, the data related to the cards is saved in secured data volts. Further, in case of theft, the user will be able to wipe the data remotely, restricting anyone from accessing their financial details, notes Deccan Chronicle.
However, the feature is available only in high-end smartphones and some selected mid-level phones for now. But this may change, according to Gadgets 360, which reports that the Korean firm is holding talks with various OEMs on a plan to release the feature on non-Samsung phones.
If the deal goes through, smartphone makers will either need to embed a Magnetic Secure transmission (MST) chip in their phones or possibly sell it as an after-sale accessory. To do this, Samsung could be planning an accessory similar to the LoopPay Card, which can attach to other phones.
Samsung will also start shipping mid-tier phones that will come embedded with the hardware to support the Samsung Pay application. However, for other brands, Samsung Pay will be restricted only to the high-end phones, meaning that buyers who want Samsung Pay in their mid-tier phone will have to buy the Samsung brand.
Could prove a masterstroke
On Samsung smartphones, the Samsung Pay feature is an alternative to Android Pay and Apple Pay. In an estimate made earlier this year, a total of 34 million people were using Samsung Pay, compared to Apple Pay’s 86 million users. Android Pay stands at the third spot with 24 million users, notes CNET. Therefore, Samsung could be a playing masterstroke by offering its mobile payment service to other brands.
Separately, the company has been cutting deals with already-established names such as PayPal to expand its footprint. A few weeks ago, the smartphone maker entered into a strategic partnership with PayPal to incorporate it as a payment method wherever Samsung Pay is accepted, in-app, online and in stores.
For now, all U.S. Samsung Pay users will be able to make payments through PayPal as well. The service will soon expand to other countries. Further, PayPal merchants will be able to accept Samsung Pay as a payment method, both in-app and online.
Meanwhile, Samsung posted record operating profit at $12.67 billion for the second quarter of 2017. Operating profits surged 73% compared to last year, while revenue increased by 19.8% over the last year.
