Mobile Korea

GSM Association goes with KTF’s mobile payment service


A mobile payment service proposed by Korean operator KTF is uniting the world's leading service providers. The GSM Association announced at the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, on the 13th that it will launch a“Pay-Buy Mobile Initiative”as suggested by the Korean mobile operator. The GSM Association comprises about 888 member companies, including service providers, equipment and terminal manufacturers.

Once the agreement comes into force, consumers can purchase goods and services anywhere in the world using their mobile payment enabled handsets. The mobile payments will be made using a Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) / Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) card in the phone and contactless Near Field Communications (NFC) technology. Fourteen mobile operators including KTF, Cingular Wireless, China Mobile, and NTT DoCoMo are participating in the initiative.

KTF will lead the initiative and is planning to conduct an end-to-end trial in Korea within this year. In addition, LG Electronics will provide handsets for the initial trial in Korea and Mastercard will also take part. Last year, the GSM Association suggested the global application of NFC, the technology used to link mobile devices to payment and contactless systems. Robert Conway, president of the GSM Association said: “Through the KTF led Pay-Buy Mobile Initiative, users will benefit from the ability to purchase items in a secure and convenient way from the comfort of their own mobile phones.”