Samsung Pay takes a 'mini' step onto non-Samsung Android phones

Samsung is trying a number of plays to extend the reach of Samsung Pay, and plans to launch a Samsung Pay Mini app for online payments on all Android phones.

The scaled-down app will not support contactless retail payments, which Samsung typically handles on its own devices through NFC or a process of simulating a magnetic stripe signal.

Expected to be formally launched in the first quarter in South Korea, Samsung will initially test the app starting Feb. 6, with the app downloadable via Google Play. A broader rollout will follow at a later date. Phones running Android 5.0 Lollipop or above with at least a 1280 by 720 display will be able to use the app.

Like most third-party mobile payment apps, Samsung Pay faces challenges to live up to its early billing. Some of its other moves to boost usage have included marketing initiatives and adding support for wearable payments.

Samsung Pay app
An employee demonstrates Samsung Electronics Co.'s Samsung Pay application on a Galaxy Note 7 smartphone with stylus during a media event in Seoul, South Korea, on Thursday, Aug. 11, 2016. Samsung's large-screen Galaxy Note 7 smartphone can be unlocked with an iris-scanning camera. Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg
SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg

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