Japanese wireless operator NTT DoCoMo is to begin live trials of a mobile shopping portal which presents users with bills for purchases alongside their monthly handset rental charges.
The six-month trial of the service, which is available to customers using Mova 2G and Foma 3G handsets, is scheduled to commence at the end of the month.
Initially, three virtual shops will be offering GPS services, such as tracking and emergency-related services, with an additional five stores joining from September. In total, about 20 virtual shops selling such items as fashion goods, groceries and flowers will be participating in the trial.
Users are required to register in advance via the official i-mode portal site. The service is free and users are only required to pay packet transmission charges. During the trial, purchases between a minimum Y1000 and Y10,000 per month will be accepted.
NTT DoCoMo expects the new system, available to over 38 million i-mode users, to help stimulate mobile e-commerce growth.
A similar scheme, dubbed Premium EZ Payment, is to be launched in July by KDDI and Okinawa Cellular Telephone over the 'au de okaimo' on-line shopping portal. Thirty-three companies, including Rakuten Inc., and a wide variety of retailers, content providers, and ASPs, are planning to participate in this new service.
KDDI has also sealed agreements with eCash Corporation and Yamato System Development to provide e-commerce and logistics packages for merchants moving to the portal.