Cellcard, Fortumo launch direct carrier billing in Cambodia

Leading Cambodian mobile operator Cellcard and mobile payments company Fortumo have launched direct carrier billing partnership, which allows over 4 million Cellcard subscribers to pay for digital content by simply charging payments to their mobile phone bill.

“We chose Fortumo as our partner for direct carrier billing due to their long-term presence in Asia and their use of an advanced, reliable technological platform,” said Cellcard CEO Ian Watson. “Our subscribers will now be able to easily access content from the world’s largest digital media companies, which would otherwise be unavailable for any subscriber without access to a credit card or an online payment account.”

Siddharth Sahi, Fortumo Vice President of Business Development & Carrier Relations, said his company was uniquely positioned to provide access to both global app stores as well as leading digital merchants.

“Our partnership with Cellcard further cements Fortumo’s position as a leading carrier billing provider for emerging markets,” he said. “We are excited to work together with Cellcard and enable online payments for millions of their subscribers in Cambodia.”

More than 15 million Cambodians own a mobile phone, of which 6 million are smartphones. Over the past year, local smartphone ownership has jumped from 26% to 40%. Only 5% of Cambodians, however, own a bank card, making online payments inaccessible for a majority of people. Carrier billing provides an opportunity for both mobile operators and digital content merchants to grow their online payment reach in Cambodia through direct carrier billing.

Fortumo’s direct carrier billing platform is used by leading app stores (Google Play, Windows Phone Store), digital media companies (Sony, Hooq, Gaana) and game developers (EA Mobile, Gameloft, Rovio). To enable global carrier billing for these merchants, Fortumo partners with more than 350 mobile operators across the world.

Fortumo’s direct carrier billing platform allows users to make payments over a data connection by confirming purchases with one click on their phone. Payments are processed without any additional information required from the mobile user, which provides a significant conversion improvement compared to any other online payment method.

Meanwhile, Fortumo recently announced direct carrier billing partnerships with Reliance Communications in India, Zong in Pakistan and Viettel in Vietnam for payments on Google Play. In the Asia Pacific region, the company’s direct carrier billing platform is available to 1.5 billion consumers in 16 countries. More information on Asia’s carrier billing ecosystem can be found in Fortumo’s recent market report.