Zong (payments provider) facts for kids
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| Industry | Telecommunications Mobile communications Payments |
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| Founded | 2008 |
| Headquarters | Menlo Park, California, United States |
| Products | Electronic payments Mobile Payments |
| Owner | eBay |
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Number of employees
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80 |
Zong was a company that helped people pay for things online using their mobile phones. It was a special kind of mobile payment service. If you had a mobile phone, you could buy small items on the Internet. The cost would simply be added to your phone bill.
Zong was bought by eBay in 2011. It stopped working completely in 2015. Today, if you try to visit Zong's old website, it sends you to PayPal instead. Zong was mostly used for online games and social networks. People used it to buy things like virtual goods in games. In 2009, Zong even won an award for being a new and smart idea in mobile payments.
Contents
The Story of Zong
How Zong Started
Zong began in 2008 in the United States. It was a new way to pay for things online using your mobile phone bill. Zong came from another company called Echovox. The idea was to make it easier for people to buy things online without needing a credit card.
Zong Joins PayPal
In 2011, Zong was sold to PayPal. At that time, David A. Marcus was the CEO of Zong. After the sale, he became the new president of PayPal. This was a big step for both companies.
When Zong Disappeared
By May 2015, Zong was no longer available online. The company simply stopped its services without a public announcement. Its website now redirects to PayPal.
How Zong Helped People
Paying with Your Phone
Zong was very helpful for people who did not have a credit card. It also made it easy to make small purchases online. You could use your mobile phone to pay. The amount you spent was then added to your phone bill by your mobile phone company.
Zong's Focus and Partners
Zong mainly worked with social networks and online games. It made buying virtual items simple. Zong also partnered with mobile phone companies. This allowed them to charge customers directly through their phone bills.
In 2009, Zong decided to focus only on its mobile payment system. They stopped using short text message services for payments. Zong also shared its application programming interface. This allowed other developers to create content and sell it to mobile users around the world.
More to Explore
- Mobile commerce service provider
- Echovox
- Software Service & Innovation
