Pinterest has become the latest social network to enter the e-commerce market, teaming up with Stripe to introduce a "buy" button.
When browsing the "visual discovery tool" people in the US will soon see that some Pins have a blue price button. If looking for something specific, a price filter can be used to hone down the search.
To make a purchase the customer taps the button and pays with Apple Pay or a credit card. After an initial purchase is made, payment details are stored, although Pinterest stresses it will not hold the information itself.
The feature will come to American iPhone and iPad owners in a few weeks, with Android and desktop users following later. Retailers like Macy’s and Neiman Marcus, and thousands of Shopify stores are onboard, ready to add millions of buyable Pins.
Pinterest follows Facebook and Twitter in enlisting startup Stripe to power the buy button and could prove to be the social network most suited to e-commerce because it is already widely used for virtual window shopping.