US consumers will soon be able to place grocery orders with online grocer FreshDirect and supermarket chain ShopRite by entering the items they wish to purchase into a touchscreen built into Samsung’s new Family Hub refrigerator.

Consumers will also be able to use a new Groceries by MasterCard shopping app to add items to their shopping list by scanning a barcode with their mobile phone.

“Groceries was developed in partnership between MasterCard Labs and Samsung and will come preloaded in Samsung’s Family Hub refrigerator,” MasterCard says. “Items are added to a cart and the final shopping list is approved with a 4-digit PIN, providing control over household purchases. Items are then paid for in a simple, single checkout experience that accepts any US-issued credit and debit cards.

“Orders are delivered directly by the merchants and are not dependent on a third-party or concierge service. MasterCard has also developed a companion mobile app for Groceries which allows multiple members of a family to add to a single cart from a device of their choice. At home, consumers can also use the mobile app to scan barcodes on products for easy additions to the online shopping cart.”

“The Groceries shopping cart will also learn a family’s shopping habits, making personalised suggestions on items and brands,” the payment network adds. “New features will continue to roll out, including recipe and video integration.

“As the rollout continues in 2016, additional grocers will be added to the Groceries app through MasterCard’s partnership with MyWebGrocer, which provides ecommerce and digital marketing solutions for more than 130 grocers across the globe and over 500 major consumer packaged goods brands.”

A video shows how Groceries by MasterCard will work:

“In a world where every device — from the phone to the refrigerator — is connected to the internet, the ways in which consumers interact and transact with their favourite brands are changing,” says Betty DeVita, chief commercial officer at MasterCard Labs.

“We’re developing compelling, safe and seamless commerce experiences for consumers across channels and devices as we continue to eliminate the boundaries between how we shop and how we pay.”

“Commerce-enabled devices like the Family Hub refrigerator represent an unprecedented opportunity for our customers because it puts them right where the consumer path to purchase begins — in the kitchen,” adds Eric Healy, president of MyWebGrocer.

“We look forward to leveraging the open, API-centric capabilities of our Digital Experience Platform to advance our partnership with MasterCard and enable grocers and CPG brands to capitalize on the way in which the Internet of Things (IoT) revolution will transform the grocery shopping experience.”

The Samsung Family Hub refrigerator will be available in the US from May.

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