Samsung Pay, which is Samsung’s mobile financial payment service, is going to be installed into refrigerators.
Samsung Electronics is broadening applicable range of Samsung Pay from Smartphone to Smartwatch called Gear S3 and refrigerators and is expecting vitalization of ‘refrigerator shopping’ after putting tool for payments into refrigerators.
According to a related industry on the 18th, Samsung Electronics is working on a final stage of work to install Samsung Pay into Samsung Family Hub Refrigerator.
Not only does Family Hub Refrigerator has a basic function to keep ingredients fresh but it also emphasizes additional functions such as communication, shopping, and entertainment to change kitchen into a space that is centered on family environment.
Out of all of its functions, its ‘ingredient shopping’ draws the most attention. When a person touches LCD that is attached onto Family Hub’s door couple times, Family Hub provides online shopping service called ‘Food Management’ that allows one to order ingredients very easily.
Samsung Electronics has partnered up with South Korea’s 3 biggest distributors such as EMart, Lotte Mart, and Home Plus for this function. It is also going to add Hyundai’s online mall called ‘The Hyundai.Com’ shortly.
A payment system needs to back up shopping functions. Although Family Hub allowed people to order and pay in front of refrigerators until now, it had certain limitations such as only supporting Samsung Card. By putting in Samsung Card’s SMS payment function into Family Hub, one can make payments through SMS without any official certificates.
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If Samsung Pay is set as Family Hub Refrigerator’s payment function, payment process is going to be simplified greatly. Through this, it is expected that Family Hub Refrigerator’s shopping function is going to be enforced greatly.
Payments can be finished when a person selects Samsung Pay and enters his or her passwords during payment process.
Rights that are limited to Samsung Card holders will also increase greatly in convenience and popularity through a system that links accounts from 5 commercial banks and most of South Korea’s card products that support Samsung Pay.
“If we install Samsung Pay into Family Hub, convenience and accessibility for consumers’ payments will be improved greatly.” said a representative for Samsung Electronics. “This will be an opportunity to attract consumers to Family Hub.”
As Samsung Pay is installed into refrigerators followed by Smartphones, it is predicted that use of Samsung Pay will be expanded very fast. Until now, Samsung Pay can only be used by Samsung Galaxy S6 or newer Smartphones. It is scheduled that Samsung Pay will also be supposed by Gear S3 that is expected to be released in South Korea shortly. Gear S2 also partially supports Samsung Pay with NFC method.
Samsung Electronics is working on strengthening its platforms by placing Family Hub Refrigerator as Smart Home Hub. Unlike other household appliances, refrigerators attract attentions as power is supplied to them 24 hours.
If Smart Home Hub’s payment system is based on Samsung Pay, a possibility of all of Samsung’s Smart Home infrastructures’ payment systems having converged into Samsung Pay is going to get stronger.
“While Samsung Electronics is strengthening its Smart Home system with Family Hub at the center, it is important to pay attention to a fact that Samsung Pay is installed into Family Hub.” said an expert of this industry. “There is a possibility that all of systems that are related to payments within houses will be led by Samsung Pay.”
Staff Reporter Park, Sora | srpark@etnews.com