“Apple wants to replace yet another daily tool with your iPhone: your wallet,” Mark Gurman reports for 9to5Mac.
“Executives from the Cupertino-based technology company have begun discussions with directors from retail store chains about a mobile payments service, according to a source with direct knowledge of the talks,” Gurman reports. “Previous reports indicated that Apple is exploring new payments services through discussions with executives from existing payments companies.”
“These latest mobile payments-related discussions, which have occurred with retail store brands such as those that sell luxury clothing and premium goods, have taken place over the past couple of months, according to the source,” Gurman reports. “The Apple mobile payments service would be integrated into iOS devices such as the iPhone and would be a comprehensive solution that would allow an iPhone user to leverage their device as a form of payment in retail stores. Based on information from various people briefed on the matter, the service would tie directly to iTunes accounts.”
Much more in the full article – recommended – here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Dan K.” for the heads up.]
Related article:
Apple interviewing senior payments industry execs for ‘very serious’ mobile payments push – April 21, 2014
Bank on it and take it to the Bank. Bezos lookout.
If Apple rolls out a mobile payment platform and a platform for controlling home devices, I doubt Apple and Time Cook will get much credit for innovation. Same with CarPlay. Apple is continuing to push to make iOS ubiquitous, but Wall Street thinks innovation is just shiny new gadgets.
Yes it seems you have to be involved in glasses that make you look stupid and really are no more than a gimmick for the foreseeable future, but hey they are different, or driverless cars which again will be impossible to use in a natural environment in probably the next 25+ years if ever. But hey people get all excited about it, which is after all the sole intention. Meanwhile Apple gets on with tech that will truly transform our lives over the next 5 to 10 years.
I think a car with some kind of autopilot will come out eventually, but it won’t be Google’s version. There’s no way I would ever buy a car that had no steering wheel — I like driving.
Not if, but when, and very true. What Wall Street can’t see is that hardware improvements are really just going to be incremental at this point. The true usefulness of hardware will be software and integration, expanding mobile devices to handle virtually anything in our lives we want.
I rarely have a camera with me anymore (I use a good full HD camcorder to record my sons’ football games), I don’t have a separate music player, I don’t use any other device for navigation (not even built into a car and I won’t buy an in-car navi system again), I don’t have pen and paper handy, etc. etc. Now if I could leave my wallet at home. So long as I have my iPhone, I’m good to go.
Checkmate!
Google & Amazon just lost.
You have to be vertical.
This isn’t sports. Apple is not “your team.” I’m an Apple fan and a stockholder, but I don’t care in particular what happens to Amazon. I just want Apple to do well.
This is why Apple has been blocking bitcoin. The malarkey about risk and lawsuits was only a smokescreen. Apple miscalculated big time on this one. I can’t speak for everyone but so far bitcoin is the only reason I keep my samsung tablet, the piece of junk that it is.
Bitcoin has failed and will continue to get pushed aside by theft, fraud and security issues. The governments and banks of the world want nothing to do with an unregulated currency, and that will prevent bitcoin or anything like it from ever being more than a fringe red herring.