OREANDA-NEWS. October 11, 2012. NTT DOCOMO, INC., Japan’s leading mobile operator and provider of integrated services centered on mobility, and MasterCard Worldwide, a technology company and leader in the global payments industry, today announced a global business alliance for contactless payments via compatible DOCOMO smartphones. Aiming at a launch in the first half of the fiscal year ending in March 2014, the companies will expand DOCOMO’s iD™ mobile credit payment system for acceptance at MasterCard® PayPass™ merchant locations around the world.

MasterCard’s innovative payment system, MasterCard PayPass, will be available to DOCOMO customers using smartphones equipped with a contactless chip for Osaifu Keitai™ (mobile phones with wallet functions) services via near field communication (NFC). Through joint collaboration between DOCOMO and MasterCard, DOCOMO customers will be able to make iD-brand payments at nearly 500,000 MasterCard PayPass merchant locations in 41 countries (as of June 2012), in addition to over 560,000 iD terminals in Japan (as of August 2012).

According to analyst firm Berg Insight, the global installed base of NFC-ready point-of-sale terminals are expected to grow to 43.4 million units in 2017*. MasterCard PayPass is gaining strong momentum worldwide with increasing adoption across merchant categories such as retail, entertainment, dining and mass transit. When traveling around the world, DOCOMO customers soon will be able to make purchases easily via participating PayPass merchants by simply waving a smartphone over a reader.

DOCOMO and MasterCard will continue to explore opportunities to develop innovative payments services, such as coupons, which will make everyday purchases easier and more convenient for DOCOMO customers.