Apple, together with O2, a German telecommunications operator, has discretely begun to unveil the carrier billing for an array of services including the App Store and iTunes in the United States. This seems to send a message that Apple is planning to allow this method of payment in other countries.
A lot of O2 users from Germany have noticed a new method of payment while purchasing on iTunes and other services of Apple. The owner of O2, Telefonica has confirmed to TechCrunch that a new feature is indeed being unveiled on its network. The network also noted that this access is only limited, but will be extended beginning November. This move occurs a year following the O2 introduction of their Charge to Mobile program which included support for the iTunes vouchers.
Carrier billing is the method of payment allowing the users to pay for their purchases by using the phone credit or even through adding the bill to their monthly charges. This method is made to give more suitable purchases to the users, and eliminate the need for a credit card.
Although this feature was unveiled in Germany, with a notable matured credit economy, the carrier billing is most likely to be useful in the emerging markets such as India, where there is a low credit card perception. Recently, Google was said to release Play Gift Cards or prepaid vouchers for the users in India to enable them to pay their purchases by using this voucher, which is also available in retail stores, Gadgets reported.