Pay with Amazon beats Apple Pay to the punch in India

‘Pay with Amazon’, the ecommerce giant’s attempt at making online and mobile payments far more convenient and secure, launched in India today, well before the much-anticipated Apple Pay. This payment tool from Amazon is for other ecommerce companies to integrate a smoother and more convenient payment system on their own sites.

This means that third-party online retailers and merchants can outsource their financial transactions infrastructure to Amazon. Shoppers, in turn, can use the information stored in their Amazon account to make purchases on those other ecommerce sites. You don’t have to remember multiple passwords, create new accounts, or fill payment and shipping details each time. Pay with Amazon supports mobile commerce so that merchants can run it on Android, iOS, and Windows Phone apps.

Currently, Apple Pay is available only in the US, and it might take a long time to come to India, and even longer for Indian retailers to make up their minds on whether to integrate it into their sites. Pay with Amazon, meanwhile, is already live with a couple of Indian ecommerce stores, Fommy and Shopyourworld. An Amazon spokesperson says it has signups for integration with a bunch of other sites, including Babyoye, Mebelkart, and Webmallindia.

Payments will be guaranteed by Amazon’s buyer protection program against defects or delays. If you have an Amazon account already, then you will automatically register for Pay with Amazon the first time you use it to pay.

“By launching Pay with Amazon we aim to provide a trusted payment bridge between customers and sellers and further aid and support the growth and integration of small and medium businesses in the new digital economy,” says Srinivas Rao, in charge of payments for Amazon, in a statement.

Amazon is promising sellers that integrating this payment tool will drive conversions as customers will be more confident about shopping on their stores.

Payment-related issues, from fraud to clunky gateways, are a big pain-point in Indian ecommerce. Mobile wallets are slowly taking off in India now, and several startups like Paytm, Freecharge, and Atom are already in the space.

Amazon has deeper pockets, a wider network, and probably more acceptance. But local startups are more nimble, and that’s a definite advantage in the fast evolving mobile space.

See: A nimble startup is targeting a blind spot of India’s ecommerce giants, and pulling the rug from under their feet