Apple Staff Detected Utilizing Pre-launch Tap-to-Pay Functionality (Directly Between Devices)
Working in Apple's spacious campus has its perks, one of them being the chance to test new features before the rest of us get a glimpse. Apple announced Tap to Pay back in February, a feature that transforms your iPhone into a digital payment terminal. Already, Apple employees are putting this feature through its paces at the Apple Park Visitor Center, as a recent video revealed.
The footage, shared on Twitter by @NTFTWT and spotted by MacRumors, shows an employee accepting payments straight from their iPhone. It's a quick process. The employee verifies the payment amount and presents the information to the customer, who completes the transaction by tapping their phone against the employee's device. A fun animation and a flurry of blue checkmarks confirm that the transaction went smoothly.
Tap to Pay may pose a challenge to Block, Inc, the owners of Square, which provides small businesses with hardware that allows them to accept payments from credit cards, debit cards, and smartphones without a separate terminal. However, Tap to Pay primarily facilitates contactless payments, whereas Square offers a more comprehensive suite of features. Still, its ease and broad applicability could eat into Square's revenue as merchants may not need to invest in additional hardware for contactless payments.
Apple has been rumored for years to offer a payment method, and things reached a boiling point in 2020 with the $100 million purchase of Mobeewave, a Canadian startup specializing in contactless payment technology. Apple guarantees that Tap to Pay will maintain the same level of security and privacy as Apple Pay, with no data being collected or stored from these anonymous transactions.
Apple hasn't shared a release date for Tap to Pay, only hinting at a launch later this year. Initially, it'll be available in the beta versions of future iOS updates, and only on newer iPhone models like the iPhone XS. In future months, it's expected to be introduced to developers and payment platforms, starting with Stripe-integrated apps.
Tap to Pay's rollout is picking up speed as it integrates with various service providers. Deluxe, for instance, has integrated the feature into its dlxPAY iOS app, enabling merchants to accept contactless payments without additional hardware. Mollie, another service provider, launched Apple's Tap to Pay for UK customers, and it's also available for iPhone users to make in-person payments with another iPhone user through the Wallet app.
These developments in Tap to Pay could potentially impact services like Square, Inc. Deluxe's hardware-free approach, for example, could be attractive to small businesses and micro-merchants, potentially limiting the market share of traditional POS system providers like Square. The cost-efficiency and security features offered by Tap to Pay could also entice businesses to switch from traditional POS systems to the more affordable solution, potentially affecting Square's revenue streams. Furthermore, the expansion of the addressable market to micro-merchants and mobile vendors could lead to a broader market share for Deluxe, potentially eroding Square's dominance in the small business payment solutions market.
- With Tap to Pay, tech giants like Apple are revolutionizing the future of payments, challenging traditional payment solutions providers such as Block, Inc., the owners of Square.
- Apple's technology facilitates contactless payments using just your iPhone, making transactions more convenient and eliminating the need for additional hardware like those provided by Square.
- The rollout of Tap to Pay has been expanding, with service providers like Deluxe and Mollie integrating the feature into their apps, offering a more affordable and secure alternative to traditional POS systems.
- As Apple continues to innovate in the payments space with technologies like Tap to Pay, the company also guarantees the same level of security and privacy as Apple Pay, ensuring that customer data remains protected and anonymous during transactions.
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