“Back in January, Apple CEO Tim Cook dubbed 2015 ‘the year of Apple Pay,'” Ian Kar writes for Quartz. “His bold prediction about Apple’s mobile wallet, which turns a year old this week, might have been a bit optimistic.”
“But we shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss Cook’s claim outright. The year 2015 could turn out to be a major inflection point for mobile wallets,” Kar writess. “If so, it would be due in no small part to the US credit-card industry’s long-awaited move away from magnetic-stripe technology.”
“The transition to chip cards, which became the standard in the US on Oct. 1, was intended to bolster the card industry, of course. But it also offers a rare opportunity for upstarts with contactless (i.e. mobile) technology to become mainstream players in payments,” Kar writes. “While chip cards are more secure, they also take longer to process—in some cases up to 20 seconds longer, analysts say. This alone could motivate more customers to use mobile-payment systems, which are typically faster.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple Pay already has a nice foothold in the U.S. and is sure to grow, but it really needs to spread to more countries ASAP in order to become more of a first choice and less of an “do I really want to deal with trying Apple Pay here” afterthought.
SEE ALSO:
Apple Pay adds over 70 new U.S. banks and credit unions – October 20, 2015
Apple Pay should benefit immensely from Starbucks partnership, international expansion – October 14, 2015
Bank website outs Apple Pay debut in Canada – October 13, 2015
Starbucks, KFC, and Chili’s to accept Apple Pay this year – October 8, 2015
Apple starts Shanghai tech service company to bring Apple Pay to China – September 17, 2015
Apple Pay in Australia faces $2 billion fee sticking point with Aussie bankers – August 17, 2015
Apple Pay launches in the UK – July 14, 2015
Apple Pay launches today and retail will never be the same – October 20, 2014
