科技英语新闻:Google: mobile payment coming on the way

BEIJING, March 28 (Xinhuanet) -- Google Inc. is working with MasterCard Inc. and Citigroup Inc to develop a technology that could make mobile payments, according to media reports Monday.

The new technology named "Nexus S Android" is embedded in Android mobile devices and allows customers to make purchases by waving their smartphones in front of a small reader at the checkout counter.

Credit-card reader producer VeriFone Systems Inc, also involved in the new payment service, is developing contact-less devices that could allow people to pay with a wave or tap of credit card or a tap of smartphone.

To use the service, holders of Citigroup-issued debit and credit cards must activate a mobile-payment application developed for one current model of Android phones. More models will be coming as the technology advances.

Besides mobile payment, consumers would also be able to get targeted ads or discount offers, manage credit-card accounts and track spending through an application on their smartphones.

Due to the deliberate design of the technology, customers have no need to worry about the security of their payment information. Nick Holland, a mobile-transactions analyst at Yankee Group, said the new technology is more sophisticated than credit cards with a magnetic stripe.

With the coming service, Google is aiming to boost its advertising business by offering retailers more data about their customers and help them target ads and discount offers to mobile-device users near their stores.

An insider told that Google was not expected to get a cut of the transaction fees.

The service is expected to be released this year. Once released, it will broaden the uses of smartphones for everyday activities—from chatting to emailing to shopping.