Video streaming service Viaplay and mobile payments company Fortumo have launched a direct carrier billing partnership, according to a press release.

Users can purchase access to both Viaplay (€6.99/month) and Viaplay Sport (€9.99/month) by charging the payment to their mobile phone bill or deducting it from their prepaid SIM card balance. Esotonia is the first country where this feature is available. 

"Direct carrier billing complements our existing payment methods – credit card, monthly invoice, PayPal and bank link," Tanel Taal, CMO at Viaplay.ax, said in the release. "As Fortumo is a leading provider in this field with unique expertise, we decided to launch mobile payments in intense cooperation."

Viaplay is using Fortumo's turnkey Hosted Direct Carrier Billing product to give users access to its services. In the backend, the product is directly connected with the most advanced mobile operator APIs used by leading digital merchants such as Google and Spotify. This gives merchants payments capability on par with credit cards in terms of flexibility and technology such as the capability of two-step charging, dynamic pricing and automated refunding, according to the release.