It seems all the big hardware makers these days are looking to launch their own mobile payment solutions. Handset manufacturers like Apple and Samsung have already done so, while LG is working on something. Now it looks like Xiaomi, one of China’s biggest smartphone makers, is set to follow suit.
Xiaomi has announced plans to partner with China UnionPay to launch its own mobile payment tech to work exclusively on its own smartphones.
What’s interesting here is that China UnionPay and Xiaomi have worked together before on a contactless mobile-based payments service, except that was created for UnionPay’s QuickPass NFC-based service, rather than being a Xiaomi system.
The new development sounds as though it will be a Xiaomi-branded internet and NFC-based payment system, built to directly compete with the likes of Samsung Pay and Apple Pay as well as Chinese giants, Alibaba and Tencent.
Xiaomi hasn’t given any more specific information on the actual technology itself, and hasn’t announced when it intends to launch, but we’d assume that if it really wants to compete, it needs to push in to the market sooner rather than later. With Apple Pay and Samsung Pay already being active in China, it’s in danger of being left behind by other popular smartphone makers. Especially with the iPhone SE’s recent-found success in the Chinese market place.
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