Mobile payments

Business
March 19, 2013
by
Apple Mobile Payments Analysis

The Boy Genius Report: Apple’s billion dollar mobile payment magic trick

By on March 19, 2013 at 11:50 AM.

The Boy Genius Report: Apple’s billion dollar mobile payment magic trick

Apple (AAPL) shares have fallen more than 35% since hitting a record high last September. The tech press has declared that Apple is doomed. On the defensive. Unable to compete with Samsung (005930). Never mind that the company only pulled in $13 billion in profit last quarter, and only has $140 billion in cash, and that Apple has the best-selling smartphone in the world. There is one thing that Wall Street analysts have forgotten in their reports, models, and projections — Apple has 500 million iTunes accounts with credit cards. More →

No Comments
Services
November 7, 2012
by
Google Wallet Card Rumor

‘Google Wallet card’ leak points to weakness in NFC mobile payments

By on November 7, 2012 at 7:40 AM.

‘Google Wallet card’ leak points to weakness in NFC mobile payments

Launched in May 2011, Google Wallet was supposed to revolutionize shopping and replace cash and credit cards with NFC-enabled smartphones. While the idea was and still is ambitious, Google (GOOG) Wallet has been hampered by the reluctance of retailers and small businesses to upgrade their point-of-sale systems to support NFC. Last week, Android Police published what were alleged screenshots of Google’s plans for a “Google Wallet card” (GWC). Unlike the Google Wallet app for Android smartphones, the GWC doesn’t have any kind of NFC tech in it. It reportedly works just like the Google Wallet app and stores all of your credit cards in it, only you swipe it at checkout.  More →

No Comments
Business
October 19, 2012
by
NFC Growth Forecast

With or without Apple, NFC mobile payment market to hit $100 billion

By on October 19, 2012 at 5:13 PM.

With or without Apple, NFC mobile payment market to hit $100 billion

A number of industry watchers have voiced concerns that touchless mobile payment solutions will not truly find widespread adoption until Apple (AAPL) joins the fray and adds the functionality to its popular iPhone line of smartphones. While Apple has yet to give any indication that its smartphones will support NFC-based mobile payments in the future, one firm is confident that the market will soon take off like a rocket.

More →

No Comments
mobile
September 20, 2012
by

Groupon introduces mobile payment service to rival Square and PayPal

By on September 20, 2012 at 10:35 PM.

Groupon introduces mobile payment service to rival Square and PayPal

Groupon Mobile Payments

Following the likes of PayPal and Square, Groupon (GRPN) has revealed that it’s releasing its own credit card payment service called Groupon Payments. Groupon Payments will be available for the iPhone and iPod touch, and participating merchants can get free plastic dongle for swiping credit cards or pony up for a $100 smartphone case/credit card slider. According to Groupon’s website, the company will only take 1.8% of transactions processed on Discover, MasterCard and Visa cards. American Express cards will be charged a 3% transaction fee and all cards will be subject to a 15-cent charge per swipe. Groupon says its service will offer the “lowest rates available.” So are they? By comparison, PayPal’s “PayPal Here” charges 2.7% fee per transaction and Square charges 2.75% per swipe or a flat fee of $275 per year. Does the world need another mobile payment system? Groupon thinks so. More →

No Comments
mobile
August 22, 2012
by

PayPal inks Discover deal to bolster mobile payment platform

By on August 22, 2012 at 11:25 PM.

PayPal inks Discover deal to bolster mobile payment platform

PayPal Discover Partnership

PayPal on Wednesday made its big move to upend Google (GOOG) Wallet in the mobile payment platform wars by signing a deal to enable its mobile payment system on Discover’s credit card network. As reported by GigaOM, the new partnership will deliver PayPal’s in-store payment service to more than 7 million different stores across the United States starting next April. GigaOM says that when the service launches next year, PayPal customers will be able to use a PayPal Access Card to buy in-store goods in conjunction with PayPal’s mobile wallet app, which delivers deals and handles receipts, among other things. More →

No Comments
mobile
August 15, 2012
by

Big-name U.S. retailers join forces to create mobile payment solution

By on August 15, 2012 at 9:00 PM.

Big-name U.S. retailers join forces to create mobile payment solution

Mobile Payments U.S. Retailers

A number of big-name retailers including Walmart (WMT), Best Buy (BBY) and Target (TGT), have joined forces to create a company that will give customers another way to make payments with their smartphones, the Associated Press reported on Wednesday. The company, called Merchant Customer Exchange, is in the process of developing a mobile application that will offer customers a variety of coupons, rebates and access to loyalty programs, across nearly all smartphone platforms. More →

No Comments
mobile
May 25, 2012
by

PayPal inks mobile payment deal with 15 retailers

By on May 25, 2012 at 8:45 PM.

PayPal inks mobile payment deal with 15 retailers

Paypal Mobile Payments

PayPal earlier this year announced a partnership with The Home Depot that allowed customers to make point-of-sale transactions with their smartphones in more than 2,000 locations. The e-commerce company on Thursday announced that 15 new national retailers have signed on for PayPal’s in-store mobile payment service. These include, Abercrombie & Fitch, Advance Auto Parts, Aeropostale, American Eagle Outfitters, Barnes & Noble, Foot Locker, Guitar Center, Jamba Juice, JC Penney, Jos. A. Bank Clothiers, Nine West, Office Depot, Rooms To Go, Tiger Direct and Toys“R”Us. “We can’t wait to launch with these great retailers, and help them serve their customers better through PayPal,” PayPal president David Marcus said. “Consumers are relying on technology now more than ever to simplify their lives when it comes to shopping and paying, and retailers must adapt to this shift or risk becoming irrelevant.” PayPal plans to sign up as many as 20 national retailers this year. More →

No Comments
mobile
April 19, 2012
by

Barclays releases the NFC-enabled PayTag [video]

By on April 19, 2012 at 10:45 PM.

Barclays releases the NFC-enabled PayTag [video]

Barclays on Thursday announced the launch of the Barclaycard PayTag, a sticker that can be placed on any handset to equip it with instant NFC compatibility. The PayTag is an extension of a customer’s credit card account that can be used to make payments of £15 and under, though the limit will rise to £20 in June, and it is available at no cost to Barclaycard owners. “Today, we are offering the choice of mobile payments to millions of our customers at no additional cost to them,” David Chan, CEO of Barclaycard Consumer Europe, said. “More than half of us say that the item we’re most lost without is our mobile phone, so we’re giving people the option of using them to make easy, convenient, everyday payments without the need to upgrade their current handset.” The PayTag will be released to a select group of customers in the coming weeks, with mass availability coming later this year. Barclays’ commercial and press release follows below. More →

No Comments
Business
March 21, 2012
by

Google may share Google Wallet revenue with carriers to spur adoption

By on March 21, 2012 at 4:00 PM.

Google may share Google Wallet revenue with carriers to spur adoption

Google’s mobile payment service has gotten a fair amount of attention from the media, but user and partner adoption has been slow since the service was unveiled nearly a year ago. Google Wallet is the Internet giant’s eWallet offering, which incorporates NFC technology and allows users to pay for purchases using their Android smartphones rather than physical credit cards. According to Bloomberg, Google is now rethinking its service in an effort to bolster adoption. Citing multiple unnamed sources, the site claims Google is currently weighing the possibility of implementing a revenue-sharing model that would give wireless carriers like Verizon Wireless and AT&T a cut of Google’s fees when subscribers make purchases using their Google Wallet-enabled devices. “They are in a bit of a re-evaluation pattern right now,” Aite Group analyst Rick Oglesby told Bloomberg. “It’s going much slower than anticipated.” More →

No Comments
mobile
March 15, 2012
by

PayPal announces ‘PayPal Here’ iPhone payment system to compete with Square

By on March 15, 2012 at 9:55 PM.

PayPal announces ‘PayPal Here’ iPhone payment system to compete with Square

PayPal on Thursday unveiled “PayPal Here,” a small accessory similar to the solution offered by Square, that can be used to accept credit card payments on an iPhone. The reader is a large blue triangle that connects to the top of an iPhone through the headphone jack. With the help of the “PayPal Here” iOS app, a merchant can input a sum and have a consumer swipe his or her credit or debit card to make payments. PayPal’s app also features a “Scan Card” feature, which uses the iPhone’s camera to record a credit card number or even a check. The app can track invoices and cash payments, and be used with checks, credit cards and debit cards. PayPal Here comes on the heels of the company’s unveiling of an upcoming digital wallet service that looks to compete with Google Wallet. More →

No Comments
Services
March 14, 2012
by

PayPal’s Google Wallet competitor shown off at SXSW [video]

By on March 14, 2012 at 8:25 AM.

PayPal’s Google Wallet competitor shown off at SXSW [video]

During the annual South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas on Tuesday, PayPal finally showed off its upcoming digital wallet product that will compete with the likes of Google Wallet and other digital payment platforms. The EBay-run eBay Ink blog also posted a pair of videos on Tuesday in which PayPal vice president of global product and experience Sam Shrauger walks us through a number of the new eWallet product’s capabilities. PayPal’s digital wallet has a simple desktop interface and of course it features mobile compatibility and a number of now-common features, but there are also a few intriguing features that aren’t common among rival offerings. One such feature allows the user to pay for something with PayPal’s digital wallet while on the go, and then log in to his or her account at a later time and choose which credit card or bank account should supply the funds for the purchase. This feature and more are explained in a pair of videos from eBay and PayPal, which follow below. More →

No Comments
mobile
March 6, 2012
by

Apple awarded major ‘iWallet’ patent for future NFC-enabled iPhone

By on March 6, 2012 at 5:35 PM.

Apple awarded major ‘iWallet’ patent for future NFC-enabled iPhone

Apple on Tuesday was granted a significant patent by the United States Trademark & Patent Office, Patently Apple reported. The technology, which is supported by 23 Patent Claims, allows credit card companies to send statements directly to a user’s iTunes account for purchases made using an NFC-enabled iPhone. Account holders will also be able to allow a secondary account holder, such as a child, to make purchases on the same card while allowing the primary account holder to control spending and implement various limits. Even though NFC technology has been featured in a number of Android devices, some believe that the technology won’t go mainstream in a number of markets until an iPhone is equipped with a mobile payment solution. More →

1 Comment
mobile
March 2, 2012
by

Sprint to launch 10 handsets with Google Wallet support in 2012

By on March 2, 2012 at 9:30 PM.

Sprint to launch 10 handsets with Google Wallet support in 2012

Google announced at the Mobile Money: Delivering Innovative Mobile Payment Services panel during Mobile World Congress that Sprint will introduce “at least 10 additional phones” with Google Wallet support in 2012, Fierce Mobile Content reported on Thursday. The Samsung Nexus S 4G is the only smartphone currently offered by the carrier that supports Google’s NFC mobile payment system. Both the Galaxy Nexus and the LG Viper will launch with Wallet support later this year, however, and Osama Bedier, vice president of Google Wallet and Payments, said Google is continuing talks with other carriers, device manufacturers, banks, financial service providers and point-of-sale technology vendors to further extend the company’s Wallet network. More →

No Comments