Samsung will manufacturer the handsets containing near field communication (NFC) technology, while Visa will provide a SIM card that lets users make Visa payments by tapping their phone to a reader. In London, more than 60,000 locations have readers that accept Visa's contactless SIM card.
The handset model and carrier weren't announced, but in a statement Samsung and Visa said they will distribute the phones to their sponsored athletes, while consumers in London will also have the chance to purchase the device before and during the Games.
"As a pioneer in mobile technology, Samsung is striving for long-term change in the way we use mobile payments," said Seokpil Kim, President & CEO of Samsung Electronics Europe, in a statement. "In London next year, we regard the greatest show on earth as the perfect opportunity to showcase how this technology can make a positive difference to people's lives—enabling them to feel closer to the Olympic and Paralympic Games. This mobile-payment device will be available in the U.K. initially, and we plan to expand the service to other countries in Europe and around the world where contactless payment facilities are available in the near future.
Visa said it was working with convince banks, retailers, and mobile carriers around the world to support Visa's contactless mobile payment cards. Visa will also have to convince manufacturers to embed the SIM card.
On Wednesday, Gemalto, the world's largest SIM card maker by volume, announced that its NFC smart cards will be able to make contact-less MasterCard payments. On Tuesday, American Express launched a peer-to-peer mobile payment platform, Serve.
Last September Visa began mobile payment trials of Visa PayExpress in New York City and Los Angeles public transportation systems, through a partnership with Gemalto rival, DeviceFidelity.
Separately, on Friday The Guardian reported that London will not meet its Olympics deadline to launch wireless connections its subway system.