MasterCard is ramping up its smart technology presence with a Samsung partnership for a smart refrigerator, connecting customers to grocery retailers through an application.

Groceries by MasterCard connects to Samsung’s Family Hub fridge and boosts families’ ability to manage shopping lists and household stock through the appliance’s smart technology, the mobile app and partnerships with MyWebGrocer, FreshDirect and ShopRite. The program is the latest launch of MasterCard’s push towards IoT, which also includes a recent deal with electronic manufacturer Coin to work on more wearable payment technology in the upcoming year.

Connected kitchens
The Groceries by MasterCard program will provide users with the ability to purchase food items and have them delivered to their homes directly from ShopRite and FreshDirect. Samsung’s smart fridge will learn the family’s eating habits over time and provide suggestions based on this information.

Various family members can add to the app, which is also integrated into the refrigerator itself. To complete the purchase list, users enter a four digit pin number to verify identity and can pay through a one-step checkout with any major credit card.

Features such as recipe and video integration will continue to roll out following the product’s launch. The mobile device version of MasterCard’s app allows users to scan barcodes as well for future purchase and item information.

MasterCard has also announced a partnership with Coin to provide an array of mobile payments programs for wearable products and fitness trackers from manufacturers such as Atlas, Moov, and Omate.

These devices will natively include the MasterCard Digital Enablement Service, through hardware and software technology provided by Coin. As the consumer behavior and the retail industry as whole moves towards a more digitally connected world, MasterCard is hoping to continue its place a big player, captilizing on the convenience of digital payment.

MasterCard importance
Walmart angled for the top spot in mobile commerce, as evidenced by its move to integrate MasterPass into its digital offerings following the December rollout of the retailer’s own mobile payment platform (see more).

Online food grocer FreshDirect previously integrated MasterCard’s digital payments platform, MasterPass, into its mobile application and desktop site, underscoring food delivery services’ gradual shift to tap-and-go ordering (see more).