Apple Inc launched its mobile payment service Apple Pay in the Chinese mainland on Thursday, pitting itself against strong domestic rivals.

But some analysts think the new service - which uses near-field-communication or NFC technology - will struggle to win market share as domestic vendors, too, are poised to launch their own array of new handsets featuring the same functions.

Using a chipset installed in smartphones, NFC technology allows contactless data exchange between devices and point-of-sale terminals.