U.S. Cellular taps Boku for direct-to-bill mobile payments

U.S. Cellular is partnering with Boku to enable its postpaid subscribers to purchase online goods via mobile phone then charge the transaction to their monthly wireless service bill.

Boku enables consumers to make online purchases at participating merchants by entering their phone number during checkout and responding via text message to confirm the payment, instead of manually inputting credit card information or storing financial data on their device. Moving forward, Boku will support mobile payments for U.S. Cellular customers across 26 states--the carrier will supply merchants with a direct billing API supporting user authentication processing as well as continuous pricing, enabling retailers to offer goods and services across a range of price points. In addition to handling all payment processing, U.S. Cellular's billing system processes all refunds.

Boku partners with more than 250 mobile operators in 68 countries, among them U.S. Cellular rivals Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ), AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T), Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) and T-Mobile USA. The firm has raised more than $75 million in venture funding since launching in 2008, and in March 2012 closed a $35 million round led by New Enterprise Associates and Telefonica Digital.

Last year, Boku also expanded its services to the offline sector, teaming with MasterCard's PayPass retailer network to enable consumers to make payments, earn discounts and receive targeted offers via mobile phone wherever PayPass is accepted.

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