Amazon have quietly announced that they are to introduce a new online subscription payment service for SMEs in a further bid to challenge PayPal’s dominance in the sector.
The service, launching next Monday, will allow Amazon’s estimated 240m-plus users the ability to pay off their utility bills including mobile phone and digital music subscription, according to Reuters.
As with any online payment service, Amazon will take a small percentage of the transaction and will see its continued expansion as the ‘middleman’ between customers and online services which accounts for over 40pc of their entire revenue.
The online retailing site is also expected to be announcing an announcement on 18 June regarding advancements in its mobile payment capabilities in the form of a smartphone key.
They are also due to showcase its very own smartphone with 3D capabilities without the need for 3D glasses.
Speaking in a recent interview, the company’s CEO Jeff Bezos said of their decision to move into online payments: “You should see it as one of many things that we’ll do to expand where people might think about Amazon helping them.”
The online payment service has been in development over several months and has already begun operation with the US mobile service provider Ting whose product manager Justen Burdette claim led to a direct sales increase of 30pc on their website.
