South Korean web provider makes mobile payments move

South Korean web giant Naver will release a new mobile payment service for e-commerce purchases in June.

Thirty per cent of the keyword searches on South Korea’s top web portal relate to shopping. Naver’s new payment service will take advantage of this demand with a more convenient payment feature called Naver Pay.

Naver Pay will allow users to buy goods online with a smartphone or computer, possibly without having to enter a password each time they shop. The service will link a user’s ID with their credit card or bank account information, and Naver will not save any credit card numbers. Instead, a virtual number will be created for each transaction.

The payment method will be separate from the service launched in December through mobile messaging app Line, WSJ reported.

Several South Korean companies including Samsung and Daum Kakao have also launched new payment services.

Naver’s new payment system will focus on pleasing its local market, where the web portal provider has a dominant presence. The company isn’t that well known outside South Korea, and its overseas sales rely heavily on chat app Line, which counted for around a third of the company’s total revenue.

 

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