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Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. says its Samsung Pay mobile-payment service, which uses near-field communication and a radio-frequency version of magnetic-stripe data, will debut Sept. 28 in the United States. Some consumers with some Samsung smart-phone and tablet models will be able to participate in a test set to begin Aug. 25.
Announced in March following Samsung’s acquisition of LoopPay Inc., developer of the magnetic-stripe radio-field technology, Samsung Pay aims to put the handset maker in direct competition with Apple Inc.’s Apple Pay, PayPal Holdings Inc., and expected offerings from Google Inc. and the Merchant Customer Exchange. Google’s Android Pay could arrive this year, and MCX’s CurrentC wallet is expected to begin broader testing this month.
In-store mobile payments have been buoyed by last fall’s introduction of Apple Pay, with one forecast predicting Apple Pay transactions will top $22.4 billion in 2016.
Samsung hopes the inclusion of magnetic-stripe radio-field technology, which it labels Magnetic Secure Transmission, will give it an edge. MST technology enables consumers to make contactless payments by wirelessly transmitting card data to the point-of-sale terminal. The signal emulates the magnetic-field change that occurs when a mag-stripe card is passed through a reader.
“We are partnering with card networks, issuers, and acquirers, and Samsung Pay will also be the first to support contactless payment for store-branded credit cards,” InJong Rhee, Samsung Electronics executive vice president and global head of Samsung Pay, said in a press release. “The list of partners will only grow.”
Among early backers are private-label card issuer Synchrony Financial, U.S. Bank, JPMorgan Chase & Co., First Data Corp., Total System Services Inc. (TSYS), and Bank of America Corp., along with Visa Inc., MasterCard Inc., Discover Financial Services, and American Express Co.
Samsung Pay will be preloaded on select Galaxy S6 edge+ devices and Galaxy Note5 devices, with a free software upgrade available in mid-August to enable Samsung Pay on Galaxy S6 and S6 edge devices.
