Belgian operator Mobistar is now allowing subscribers to charge their Google Play purchases directly to their phone bill.

This is the first time an operator in Belgium or within the Orange group has offered direct billing for Google Play.

The functionality allows users to purchase apps and other content without the need to enter credit card details, making the payment process easier.

Subscribers can cancel app purchases within 15 minutes of the transaction via a refund button, and keep track of purchases in the customer zone on the operator’s website.

According to mobile payment company Bango — which recently launched direct billing for Mozilla’s Firefox Marketplace — the use of direct carrier billing increases app store sales by two or three times in markets with high card usage.

This rises to a 10-fold increase in sales in markets with low card usage. According to Mobistar just a third of Belgian consumers own a credit card.

Juniper Research has forecast that revenue from mobile content paid for via direct operator billing will rise from $2 billion in 2012 to $13 billion by 2017.

Mobistar launched the same functionality for Windows Phone users in December last year.