Coles tests new contactless payment system

Coles today announced it will trial new contactless payment technology in its stores. Up to 5000 consumers will take part in the trial, the supermarket chain said.

The 'Coles Pay Tag' sticker attaches to shoppers' mobile phones, allowing them to pay by swiping their handset at checkouts. The system is akin to attaching a MasterCard to a mobile phone and uses standard PayPass technology.

"It does not matter which phone you own, the Coles Pay Tag will make earning Flybuys rewards and the PayPass feature of the Coles MasterCard card easier than ever before," Coles finance director, Rob Scott, said in a statement.

Coles plans to release an app for Android handsets and iPhones that will work in conjunction with the Pay Tag.

In February Coles announced it would be trialling a mobile payments app that worked with PayPass. That trial involved a limited number of participants using Samsung Galaxy S3 smartphones and was the result of a partnership between Coles, GE Capital Australia, Gemalto, MasterCard and Vodafone.