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Apple Pay has a long, long way to go

Published Mar 19th, 2015 7:30PM EDT
Apple Pay Adoption Rate
Image: Apple Inc.

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Do consumers actually want to buy things using their smartphones? It’s a very good question and right now the answer would appear to be, “No.” AppleInsider cites a new study from market research firm InfoScout that claims only 6% of iPhone 6 and 6 Plus owners have actually tried using Apple Pay in stores while 85% have never bothered with it.

RELATED: How the Apple Watch could solve one of Apple Pay’s biggest problems

That’s obviously a very low rate of adoption, although to be fair the technology is still young and not available everywhere. All the same, it raises a real question: Is buying things with a credit card really such a burden that people will want to take the time to learn a whole system that may or may not be available at the stores they use?

“Not only do you have to have consumers with Apple Pay, you have to have consumers with iPhone 6,” said PYMNTS CEO Karen Webster this week, in a quote cited by AppleInsider. “So, you have to have a consumer with the right hardware and the merchant with the right hardware in order for it to work.”

Apple Pay has won acclaim for being the easiest to use mobile payments method but that still might not be enough to save it from the same fate as Google Wallet.

Brad Reed
Brad Reed Staff Writer

Brad Reed has written about technology for over eight years at BGR.com and Network World. Prior to that, he wrote freelance stories for political publications such as AlterNet and the American Prospect. He has a Master's Degree in Business and Economics Journalism from Boston University.