LG to launch mobile payment service in South Korea this year
LG Pay is set to debut with the G6 flagship phone on LG's home turf in the third quarter.
The LG G6 will include LG's homegrown payment service.
LG Electronics wants a chunk of the meaty mobile payment market that is estimated to reach $780 billion worldwide this year.
The South Korean company told CNET on Wednesday that it will roll out its new mobile payment service via its LG G6 flagship smartphones in South Korea in the third quarter. The service will be called LG Pay.
The launch of LG Pay means the company will join the ranks of phone makers Apple and Samsung in offering customers the option of going cashless. Apple and Samsung have already made their payment services available in more than 10 countries. And while Google's Android Pay is already available on LG phones, the move to use its own payment system would allow LG to control its own cashless destiny and potentially tap into the booming market.
LG's payment service will enable customers to make payments using a proprietary form of technology from Dynamics known as Wireless Magnetic Communication (WMC). When a phone is held against a credit card reader, it emits a magnetic signal that simulates the magnetic strip found on credit cards.
LG told CNET that it cannot confirm yet whether other smartphone models will be compatible with LG Pay. In addition, the company is still discussing an overseas payment service.
Correction, March 23 at 7:30 a.m.: An earlier version of this story said LG's payment service allows users to make payments using MST technology. This is incorrect. LG Pay will adopt a proprietary form of magnetic communication from Dynamics known as Wireless Magnetic Communication (WMC).
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