Tag: payment

Mobile Payment Heats Up Again As Google Debuts Android Pay

Posted on by Lab Team

Earlier today at its annual I/O developer conference, Google officially unveiled its newest attempt at conquering mobile payment—a new Android Pay app that will power both in-app purchases and physical transactions in stores. Replacing the old Google Wallet app on mobile, Android Pay will become the universal payment solution in the Android ecosystem. Using tokenization and Near Field Communications (NFC) technology, as well as support for fingerprint authentication, Android Pay seems to work, quite frankly, just like Apple Pay. Unsurprisingly, it also comes with an API that will allow developers to incorporate payments into their apps.

Previously, Google has had a tough time getting major banks and credit card companies on board for their payment products, but things look different this time around. Retailers are eager to participate given the seamless integration of loyalty rewards, which Apple is likely to launch soon also. Three out of the four biggest wireless carriers in the states, save for Sprint, are among launch partners for Android Pay, along with all major credit card providers like Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and AmEx.

Besides an NFC chip and the more recent Android OS (KitKat or higher), making it usable on more than half of active Android phones. Given Android’s over 1 billion active users worldwide, it may just be what Google needs to catch up with Apple in mobile payments. It remains to be seen whether Android Pay adoption for in-store purchases will help Google attribute sales to prior ad views.

Jawbone to Launch Payments Wearable With Amex

Posted on by Lab Team

Read original story on: Re/code

Wearable maker Jawbone is making its first entry into the payment market by announcing a deal with American Express to create a payment-enabled fitness tracker, named the Up4. Enabled by NFC technology, Up4 is the first wearable device after Apple Watch to incorporate mobile payment into its functionality. Given the significant competitions in the space, Jawbone certainly needs this to stand out.

 

Head image taken from Jawbone.com

Event Recap: Retail News From NRF’s BIG Day 2015

Posted on by Lab Team

The NRF’s BIG Day is a little like CES for retail: there are big tech announcements, thought-leading keynotes, and large showcases at New York’s Jacob Javits Center. Here’s a recap of a few of the larger news reveals:

  • NCR is releasing a new touchscreen pay kiosk, called SelfServ 90. With a small and nimble form, it’s meant to upgrade the self-service checkout experience. Wincor Nixdorf also premiered its new moPOS system, as did Panasonic.

  • Panasonic also premiered PowerShelf, an electronic shelving unit equipped with beacons that can be enabled for both advertising and inventory management.

  • Lots of partnerships this week: Samsung is integrating with tagging/payment system PowaTag. Gimbal, which is also premiering its new Series 21 Beacon, is partnering with audio recognition giant Shazam and mobile offers solution Koupon Media.

  • Spearheading the intersection between retail and tech, Intel has a big booth this year. It is showcasing beacon solutions, mobile payments, a Beef-o-Brady tabletop tablet payment implementation for Beef-o-Bready, its SteadyServ iKeg system for intelligent bar inventory, and its Memory Mirror apparel virtualization tech (on display at Neiman Marcus).

  • IBM released a suite of sales apps, called MobileFirst. Developed by Cognitive Scale, the apps will be Sales Assist (for customer acquisition + management), and Pick & Pack (smart inventory via beacon integration).

Stay tuned for more product news—this is only the beginning of retail innovation in 2015.

Square To Support Apple Pay Next Year

Posted on by Lab Team

Read original story on: The Next Web

We already knew Square had plans to support chip-based credit cards with its new card readers, but it looks like the payment company will not be competing directly with Apple Pay any time soon. In a recent interview with CNN, Square founder Jack Dorsey revealed plans to accept Apple’s new transaction standard at some point in 2015. Although not confirmed yet, we won’t be too surprised to see Square start supporting other NFC-based systems like Google Waller or Softcard as well.

Snapchat Teams Up With Square To Enter ePayment

Posted on by Lab Team

Read original story on: The Next Web

One step ahead of Facebook’s plan to put payment in its messaging app, Snapchat has teamed up with payment company Square to announced Snapcash, a new service that will allow users to send money to each other via Square’s system without leaving Snapchat. Now when a user signs up for Snapcash, they’ll be creating a Square Cash account at the same time. This partnership could be particularly helpful for Square, which has been trying to stay relevant in the face of the formidable Apple Pay.

For more information on the current state of mobile payment market, download and read our latest POV here.

Apple Pay Adds (Limited) Support For China’s UnionPay

Posted on by Lab Team

Read original story on: WSJ.com

Almost one month after its official launch, Apple Pay has finally added support for UnionPay, China’s most popular payment card (and the only government-sanctioned payment and inter-bank clearinghouse in mainland China), with over 4.5 billion cards issued. Right now, payment is limited to purchasing digital goods on its regional App Store only. But given China’s booming ecommerce sector, which is projected to hit $409 billion this year, it seems safe to assume that Apple Pay will be expanding its functionality in China soon.

Square Teaming Up With Big Brands To Stay Relevant

Posted on by Lab Team

Read original story on: The Street 

Fighting to remain relevant in the increasingly consolidated mobile payments world, Square is reaching out to some big-name retail brands, including Uniqlo, Burberry and Lululemon, for potential partnerships. The expanded deals are reportedly for processing fees lower than the traditional 2.75% rate Square usually charges small businesses, which has been the company’s main clientele so far.

Apple Pay Updates: 1 Million Credit Cards Activated

Posted on by Lab Team

Read original story on: ReadWrite

On Monday, at a technology conference organized by the Wall Street Journal, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced that Apple had activated 1 million credit cards in the first 72 hours after Apple Pay launched, calling it “already a huge hit.”

That sounds impressive—until you consider that there are more than 600 million credit and debit cards in the United States, and Apple has sold an estimated 20 million Apple Pay-compatible iPhone 6 and 6 Plus units. Also considering that many users might link multiple cards, it’s difficult to come up with a clean figure for Apple Pay’s market share among eligible iPhone 6 users.

 

Apple Pay Update: Banks Are Racing To Be The Default Card

Posted on by Lab Team

Read original story on: The Verge

With Apple Pay officially going public yesterday, banks and credit card companies are now in a tight race to be the first ones you load onto your iPhone. For one thing, banks are keen to have their customers use a digital wallet over a credit card because it could save them the considerable cost of making, distributing, and replacing plastic cards.

More importantly, Apple Pay can work with multiple credit and debit cards loaded into Passbook. But most of the time people will probably be relying on the default card, avoiding the hassle of unlocking the phone and tapping around in Passbook. It’s no wonder banks are competing eagerly for prime real estate on Apple Pay.