Japan's credit card issuers have formed a mobile payments alliance - headed by JCB - to establish a mobile payments standard that will allow consumers to use their handsets to make purchases, regardless of their credit card issuer, according to a report from Reuters.
The 39 member alliance includes mobile operators KDDI and Vodafone's Japanese unit along with Mastercard International Japan, UFJ Nikos and Toyota Motor Corporation. The report says the organisation expects to sign on ten more companies including Fujitsu.
Under the deal, customers will be able to use their mobile hand sets to pay for purchases at any stores equipped with the QuicPay contactless payments system. The amount of the purchase will then be charged onto customers' regular credit card bills.
Launched by JCB in 2003, QuicPay is currently available over NTT DoCoMo's mobile hand sets, but according to the Reuters reports all of the mobile phone operators involved in the initiative will have hand sets that feature the system by the end of the year.