Chinese technology giant Tencent and global coffee chain Starbucks have created a new social gifting feature on Tencent's popular messaging app WeChat for early next year, through which WeChat users will be able to buy and send Starbucks-branded drinks and gifts.

中国科技巨头腾讯公司和全球咖啡连锁商星巴克公司于日前达成协议，将在明年年初在社交通讯app微信上，推出创新的社交礼品购物功能，届时用户将可以通过微信来购买或赠送星巴克品牌的饮品和礼物。

In a joint statement, the companies said Starbucks will become the first retail¹ brand to combine and bring a locally relevant social gifting and digital payment experience to WeChat in China.

在双方的联合声明中，两家公司都表示，星巴克将会成为首家将社交礼品体验和数字支付方式完美结合的零售品牌。

The new gifting platform with Tencent is part of Starbucks' "growing digital presence focused on connecting with customers through digital channels, including the Starbucks Mobile App, the My Starbucks Rewards program, and social media," according to the statement.

该声明称，此次与腾讯共同推出的社交礼品体验平台，是星巴克迎合快速增长的数据时代所采取的部分战略。星巴克目前致力于通过数字平台来增强与消费者的联系。在此之前，星巴克也曾推出了自家APP、“我的星巴克奖励计划”以及其他社交媒体。

Starbucks also announced that customers will now be able to use WeChat Pay -- a digital wallet embedded² in WeChat's account -- to make payments across nearly 2,500 Starbucks stores in China.

与此同时，星巴克还宣布，顾客在门店可以使用微信支付。即日起微信支付将在星巴克中国大陆的近2500家门店同步上线。

Starbucks' own mobile app is the most successful mobile payment method in the US, with transactions reaching 7 million each week in the country, accounting³ for 16 percent of total mobile transactions there, according to a Sohu report.

据搜狐报道，星巴克自己推出的APP在美国一直是首选的移动支付方式，星巴克移动支付所产生的交易额每周可达700万美元，约占总交易额的16%。