Leading international e-commerce retailer Amazon has launched a brand new card reading device and mobile app designed to enable business owners to accept payment on the go.

The Amazon Local Register is in direct competition with other mobile payment systems such as Square, PayPal Here and GoPayment.

The innovative device will be able to attach to smartphones, Kindles or tablets to process credit or debit card payments via the same secure network used by Amazon.com.

The service will improve transactions for businesses that otherwise only accept cash or checks, such as food truck operators and outdoor events.

The Amazon card reader can be bought for $10 and the free mobile app can be downloaded from the Amazon app store, the Apple app store or Google Play. Businesses must also create a free Local Register account here.

For customers who sign up for the service by October 31 2014, Amazon will take a 1.75 per cent fee of each payment processed – a  rate that will last until January 1 2016. For people who sign up after October 31, Amazon will take a service fee of 2.5 per cent of each card swipe.

The first $10 in transaction fees will be credited back to the customer, essentially paying for the card reader.

Matt Swann, vice president of local commerce for Amazon, said:

“I’ve actually heard some business owners say the only thing that would make them change (point of sale) systems is cost savings.

“Payments are hard and that’s one of the things that gets in the way of serving customers, especially for small businesses.

“Payment tools need to be inexpensive, simple and trusted to get the job done.”

Source: ABC News