By Anhar Khanbhai

The West Australian Newspaper group has launched a point and pay system for advertisers that takes readers straight to a checkout cart on their smartphone from ads for products.

The system, developed by Point and Pay and PayPal allows readers with a QR code scanning app to scan ads in The West Australian and The Weekend West with their phone and be taken to a PayPal checkout cart for the chosen product.

Sales director at West Australian Newspapers, David Bignold, said the move is the next step in the evolution of print media.

“We’re excited to be the first daily newspaper to launch a fully transactional space to help local retailers reach consumers more effectively,” Bignold says.

It will launch with a four-page advertising lift-out that will feature a broad range of advertisers and products.

The new system will provide retailers with all the tools necessary to transact via smartphone, from QR Code technology to the mobile shopping cart, right through to fulfillment and courier integration.

Jeff Clementz, MD of PayPal Australia said PayPal is partnering with businesses like Point and Pay to help create secure and easy ways for Australian retailers to sell to customers.

“There is a huge opportunity for Australian retailers to take advantage of the growth in mobile commerce, providing consumers with seamless shopping experiences powered by PayPal’s digital wallet anywhere, anyway,” Clementz said.

“With over 50,000 merchant partners in Australia, PayPal is continuing to provide innovative solutions for our merchants to ensure they are well prepared to compete in a digital world.”

Australia has the second highest smartphone and tablet penetration in the world, and PayPal expects to handle $10 billion in transacted mobile payment volume globally this year – that is more than double the volume processed last year.

“This is just one example of how we’ll be incorporating innovative digital content into our traditional portfolio,” Bignold said.