Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer HTC Corp. told Taiwanese financial institutions they need to develop a mobile payment platform jointly, according to Central News Agency. HTC wants to see a platform similar to the one found in a smartphone it will be launching in China.

HTC inked an agreement with China UnionPay Co. to launch an Android smartphone in China. The new handset will enable mobile banking services, including bill payments and contactless payments.

"Our cooperation with China UnionPay is just the beginning, and we believe the mobile payment app will also become a critical application in Taiwan," Steve Wang, associate VP of HTC's mobile application and software design, said in the CNA story.

According to Wang, Taiwan's FIs have not yet established a platform to let users to make mobile payments in different regions around the country. The story notes that local telecom operators launched contactless payment-enabled smartphones using near field communication (NFC) technologies in 2007, but the initiative has stalled due to the chip costs and a lack of unified standards.

"It's not a problem of hardware manufacturing or technology, but one of who should set the technical standard for making such payments in Taiwan," Wang said in the story. Wang said he hopes the government can kick-start the process by launching mobile banking services in some state-owned banks, which will set an example for the private sector.