POS provider Ingenico announced today it is teaming with Czech hypermarket Globus to pilot the first mobile payment program in the Czech Republic. The company said the pilot was launched at the end July 2011 and will run for six months.

The program will include 400 customers from wireless provider Telefonica, as well as financial institutsion Citibank and Commercial Bank.

Payment terminals for the program are supplied by Ingenico. The company has more than 50,000 terminals already in the Czech Republic, most of which will be ready for contactless payments by 2012.

Customers making a mobile payment for purchases less than 500 Kc (approximately USD $30) can simply wave their contactless-enabled phones over the payment terminals. Ingenico said allowing smaller purchases to proceed without a PIN should support consumers changing their payment behavior.

"The customers of Globus will be the first ones to enjoy the security, speed and convenience of this new payment method, thanks to the involvement of major players in our country," said Marcel Gajdos, manager for contactless and mobile projects, Visa Europe.

Globus, founded in the Czech Republic in 1996, has 14 hypermarkets across the country and more than 30 million customers per year. The hypermarket retailer sees the mobile payment pilot program as an important first step toward capitalizing on a new technology.

"With the early adoption of contactless payments, Globus will certainly benefit from this competitive advantage on the market," said Miroslav Exner, director of the IT department for Globus, in the statement.