Taobao might soon allow users to pay for online orders using WeChat payment, the latest sign of improving interconnectivity between China’s tech giants.
Alibaba’s retail site Taobao and Tmall on Wednesday said it is considering giving full access to WeChat payment after collecting feedback from customers.
The company added that the latest initiative to enhance interconnectivity and improve the overall ecommerce ecosystem would inject new development momentum for online vendors and could attract new merchants in the near future.
WeChat Pay said it’s working on the interconnectivity function to link with Taobao and Tmall as the e-commerce site will decide when to make the new option available.
This is also the latest sign that Alibaba and Tencent, the tech giants that dominate the social networking and online shopping realm in China, are loosening the barrier between the two platforms, after the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in 2021 demanded they resolve the problem of blocked links between major platforms.
The ministry wants market order to be maintained and encourage future development in the industry.
Before the directive, WeChat had been preventing users from sharing Taobao merchandise links while Taobao/Tmall shoppers could only pay via Alipay.
Earlier moves from both sides have already benefited customers and vendors.
For example, users can scan WeChat payment codes through the UnionPay application and for online orders within WeChat, they can also choose to pay with the UnionPay platform.
Some Tencent-backed applications have also been allowing payment using the UnionPay app.
On the other side, Alibaba’s lifestyle and food delivery site Ele.me and video site Youku have also allowed the adoption of WeChat Pay.