Amazon Has Been Trying to Join Mobile Pay Party

As more technology companies offer ways for people to pay for goods in stores by waving their phone or wrist, Amazon.com is still working on its strategy.

The company has tried various ideas over the past year—introducing card-swiping terminals for small physical retailers and ways for consumers to store loyalty cards on their phone. The goal: defend and grow its commerce business by making transactions easier and making sure companies like Google and Apple don’t muscle in.

While many of those efforts have sputtered, Amazon in recent months approached retailers and smartphone and smartwatch makers like Samsung Electronics to partner on an Amazon payment service that would work on merchants’ websites, apps or in their physical stores.