The service, first launched in the US in September 2015, works in a similar way to Apple Pay, allowing users to load their credit or debit card details on to a smartphone equipped with a near-field communication (NFC) microchip. Shoppers, therefore, will be able to pay at retailers equipped with a contactless payment terminal, with their identity verified by their smartphone’s fingerprint reader.
According to company’s announcements, since its launch, Android Pay signed 1.5 million people up for the service every month in the US. Despite this, however, the consensus is that Android Pay has struggled to find a foothold in the country.
Competition in the mobile commerce space is changing fast, pressuring Google to launch a new service in the UK market this year among strong competitors as Apple Pay and Samsung Pay.
The British mobile commerce market in particular is growing fast and is more and more appealing, considering that many consumers use their smartphones to shop online and to purchase goods in physical stores.
In recent news, Oberthur Technologies, a global provider of security software products, services and solutions, has announced its support to the international go-to-market of Android Pay with a first launch in Australia scheduled for 2016.
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