Everything Everywhere, Telefónica UK and Vodafone UK have announced plans to form a mobile marketing and payments joint venture.

According to a statement, the new entity will provide a single contact for advertisers, marketing partners, retailers and banks. In turn, it is intended to make it easier to create m-commerce products and services.

"This groundbreaking new business will unlock the true potential of commerce in the wire-free world,” said Tom Alexander, CEO of Everything Everywhere.

Here are the main points:

• On mobile payments, the JV will deliver the technology required for the speedy adoption of mobile wallet and payments, enabling consumers to transfer their entire physical wallet into a new secure, SIM-based wallet regardless of which NFC enabled mobile device, or mobile network they are using.
• Companies and organisations that provide anything from credit, debit and loyalty cards to membership cards and transport tickets will be able to create secure mobile versions of their products.
• Consumers will be able to use their mobiles to pay for goods, services and travel using contactless technology (NFC) with one touch of their phone, or online via mobile or PC.
• The JV will provide a single contact point for advertisers, media agencies and retailers looking to reach consumers on their mobile phones. It will enable them to book advertising space and create campaigns as well as provide offers, coupons and loyalty cards which can be stored on the phone and redeemed in shops.
• Consumers will be able to receive discounts and offers from brands that are relevant to them and that they want to receive.

“We are seeing an explosion in the m-commerce market.  Mobile advertising spend alone has more than doubled in two years as consumers embrace marketing on their handsets because it is now relevant to them and provides a great customer experience,” said Ronan Dunne, CEO of Telefónica UK, who also described the mobile marketing and payments market as “extremely fragmented”.

Guy Laurence, CEO of Vodafone UK, said the move was the next phase in realising an ambition of making the mobile phone “act as a digital access card.”

The JV will be open and available to all industry participants and aim to launch by the end of the year. The three participants said they would continue to develop their own competing products and services based on the open platform infrastructure provided by the JV.

“This is not just something that is unique in the UK, but a JV that will create a model that many countries around the world could follow,” claimed Dunne.