Over a dozen leading U.S. merchants, including Wal-Mart Stores and Best Buy, on Wednesday jointly launched a new company to push for the offering of mobile wallet, or the use of smartphone to make payment.
The company, called Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX), is dedicated to "offering consumers a versatile mobile-commerce experience that will combine the convenience of paying at the register with customizable offers," the group said in a joint press release.
MCX said it has started to develop a mobile application that can help merchants seamlessly integrate a wide range of consumer offers, promotions and retail programs.
Other merchants in the MCX include Target, 7-Eleven, Sunoco, CVS/pharmacy, Lowe's and Sears, and additional members are expected to join in the coming months.
The initial members in the group account for about one trillion U.S. dollars in annual sales in total, together serving almost every smartphone user in the nation.
The new venture is the latest sign of the heated-up rivalry among heavy-weight players from various industries to vie for a place in the emerging mobile payment business.
Internet search giant Google released its Google Wallet mobile application in 2011, which allows users to store their credit and debit cards on mobile phones and make in-store payment by simply tapping their devices.
Verizon Wireless, AT&T Mobility and T-Mobile USA, the three largest wireless carriers in the United States, have also formed a joint venture called Isis, which plans to start testing mobile wallet services this summer in U.S. cities of Austin and Salt Lake City.
According to research firm Gartner, mobile payment transaction worldwide is expected to reach nearly 172 billion dollars in 2012, an increase of about 62 percent from a year ago.
Gartner analysts predicted that global mobile payment transaction will surge to 617 billion dollars by 2016 with 448 million users.
