Samsung Pay set to launch in Europe

Mobile payments are fast becoming the next big thing in mobile and rather than just smaller companies offering the service, we’re increasingly seeing large mobile OEMs enter the mCommerce arena. Samsung is no different and is set to follow Apple (with Android Pay also coming later this year) by launching its Samsung Pay service in Europe.

The Korean manufacturer has today announced that it has extended its partnership with MasterCard to bring Samsung Pay to Europe. Samsung Pay – which is currently in testing in South Korea – is rumoured to be launching in limited form on Samsung’s upcoming round smartwatch, which is dubbed the Samsung Gear A.

[related_videos title=”Samsung Gear in video:” align=”left” type=”custom” videos=”592175,520364,410086,373848,372536,369852″]Samsung Pay will use MasterCard’s Digital Enablement Service for processing transactions, which is the same technology adopted by Apple for NFC-based Apple Pay in the iPhone 6. One thing that sets Samsung Pay apart from its rivals is that it will also work with Magnetic Strip Technologies, which are present in 99% of retailers around the world.

While both Apple Pay and Android Pay will need new contactless-capable hardware in-store in order to accept payments, Samsung Pay will have a much wider reach mainly as it can work with all existing hardware. As such, it’s likely that adoption of Samsung Pay could be significantly higher, although other factors (such as the handset compatibility) will have an impact on overall adoption.

Samsung is yet to confirm when customers will be able to use Samsung Pay but we’ve previously heard that the service is set to launch in September. Furthermore, the rumoured introduction of the Gear A on August 13th – where it is likely to be accompanied by the Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Edge Plus – should see the beginning stages of the launch and Samsung’s new handsets could also be the first to work with Samsung Pay.

Do you use mobile payments? If so, which service and what are your thoughts on it? What do you think of the compatibility of Samsung Pay with existing retailer hardware; will it be enough to help Samsung sell smartphones? Let us know your views in the comments guys!