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The service is available on the PayPal website.

Users first have to activate their phone and have a PayPal account, and can then send money either with a simple SMS message detailing the amount and destination account, or by dialling a number and following automated instructions.

To receive funds sent via the service, PayPal users have to log in to the website in order to collect payments.

There is no charge for

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sending money, although network operators will charge for the text message. Receiving money is also free to those with personal accounts.

PayPal sees the service being used for a range of purposes: from making it easy to split the cost of dining out to paying for something directly on your phone from a code on a billboard or magazine advert.

Accounts are PIN-protected, and a PIN is set up on activation of your phone.

The service will be officially launched over the next few weeks in the US, UK, and Canada.

Using a mobile phone to pay for goods has been pursued for some time. Even in 2001 Nokia was trialling its Electronic Mobile Payment Services (EMPS). And NTT DoCoMo successfully introduced its FeLiCa service in 2004, allowing users to pay for train tickets and other items simply by swiping the phone.

The PayPal system is already well-established and trusted, and the familiarity of the service may well be one of its strengths. But will having so convenient a method of making payments to anyone, anywhere prove equally attractive to criminals?

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