Samsung Pay has launched in Australia on Wednesday, June 15, as part of the company's long-term service strategy.
TechCrunch reports that Samsung smartphone owners in Australia can now use the Samsung Pay service since Wednesday, June 15. Its launch in Australia came just the day before Samsung Pay is set to debut in Singapore. Up to date, the mobile payment service is already available in The United States, South Korea, Spain and China.
Elle Kim, Samsung Pay global vice president, said in a press release that Samsung Pay has reached over five million registered users in the first six months of launching in the U.S. and Korea. Kim added that today, in South Korea alone, the mobile payment service has processed more than $1 billion of transactions.
Based on this success of the Samsung Pay service, the company has big expectations on the Australian market that is seen as a great opportunity since there "contactless payments are already in strong demand." The research company RF Intelligence Group has estimated in a May 2015 survey that 53 percent of Australians have already made a transaction with a contactless payment method.
Mobile payment providers strive to tap into the Australian market, where Square, Android Pay and Apple Pay are already available. But mobile payment apps are not guaranteed to have an easy time just because contactless payments are already popular in Australia.
Since many consumers use already to make accustomed to making contactless payments with tap-and-go credit cards such as MasterCard PayPass and Visa PayWave, Samsung Pay and its competitors may encounter difficulties in convincing new users to sign on.
ZDNet reports that in order to attract Australians to sign in to Samsung Pay, the South Korean company plans to provide more services, going beyond the ability to just pay with smartphones. As Kim explained, Samsung Pays not only strive to replace customers' wallet, but will also provide additional features such as gift cards.
Samsung Pay will be first available in Australia to customers of Citibank and American Express. The service is compatible with Galaxy S6 and S7 smartphones, as in other markets.
