Version 8.0 of Google Wallet is now available to download from Google Play in the US... More
USA
Apple store adds PayPal
PayPal is now available as a payment option in Apple’s online retail store for US and UK shoppers having previously only been available as a payment option in Apple’s app and content stores, Re/code reports... More
NFC World’s Sarah Clark to chair mobile payments session at CES 2015
The editor of NFC World+ will be at the International CES in Las Vegas from 4-9 January to chair the future of mobile payments conference session and meet up with readers to discuss the latest technologies and trends... More
MIT researchers unveil NFC sensors that detect hazardous chemicals
MIT chemists have devised a way to detect hazardous gases and environmental pollutants using an NFC-enabled sensor and a smartphone... More
Chick-fil-A rolls out mobile payments
Fast food chain Chick-fil-A has rolled out mobile payments to all of its US restaurants, with the exception of licensed locations, following a pilot that began in June 2014... More
US online buyers warm to mobile payments
Two fifths (40%) of US online buyers like the idea of making a mobile payment instead of carrying around a wallet with 76% saying they are dissatisfied with the strength of credit card security among retailers, a survey conducted by Bizrate Insights has found... More
One in four US smartphone owners have paid by mobile
Almost a quarter (24%) of US smartphone owners have now used one or more mobile payment apps, research from PunchTab has found... More
Starbucks eyes iBeacon
Starbucks is to use Bluetooth beacon technology in the first of its new Starbucks Reserve Roastery and Tasting Room locations in the Capitol Hill neighbourhood of Seattle in the coming year... More
One in ten US iPhone 6 owners have now used Apple Pay
Apple Pay is yet to gain widespread adoption among iPhone 6 owners due to poor awareness of which stores accept the NFC payments technology and a lack of understanding of how the service works, a survey conducted by InfoScout has found. Those who have used it, however, compare it highly favourably to using a traditional plastic card. More
Starbucks launches Mobile Order & Pay in Portland
Starbucks’ Mobile Order & Pay service is now live in Portland, Oregon ahead of a planned nationwide roll out across the US that will begin in 2015... More
Office Depot delivers marketing messages to shoppers via Shazam audio watermarks
Office Depot has become the first retail chain to roll out Shazam In-Store, a mobile marketing platform that makes use of the Shazam music discovery app, inaudible digital watermarks, a merchant’s overhead music system and a location-based platform developed by Mood Media to send promotional messages to shoppers’ mobile phones... More
Credit unions to adopt Apple Pay
A number of US credit unions are actively working towards adopting Apple Pay NFC payments, credit union technology provider Co-op Financial Services has revealed... More
Sephora adds Apple Pay
Cosmetics store chain Sephora has rolled out support for Apple Pay in all five of its Bay Area stores in the US and is also testing NFC payments acceptance in one Manhattan location in New York... More
HouseTab drives usage with charity donations
Mobile app HouseTab is to donate US$1 to the Food Bank For New York City each time someone registers to use the app until the beginning of January, and will make additional donations every time the app is used to pay for a tab or to send drinks or food... More
Swirl reports positive consumer feedback on in-store beacon offers
Six in ten (60%) shoppers who receive a beacon-triggered message while shopping in a store open and engage with the content and 30% redeem beacon-triggered offers at the point of sale, analysis by Bluetooth beacon offers platform Swirl has found... More
Dunkin’ Mobile gets 10m downloads
Dunkin’ Donuts’ Dunkin’ Mobile payments and rewards app has been downloaded more than 10m times since its launch in 2012 and two million customers have signed up for its DD Perks loyalty program, available on mobile and via a plastic card, the US merchant has revealed... More
Square Register to support NFC
Square will add support for Apple Pay mobile payments sometime in 2015, the company’s founder Jack Dorsey has told CNN... More
America First Credit Union adds Apple Pay
America First Credit Union has become the latest card issuer to roll out support for Apple Pay to its members... More
Google Wallet offers discounts
Google Wallet has announced availability of a variety of discounts to online shoppers who choose to Buy With Google this holiday season... More
30% of US smartphone owners to use mobile payments this holiday season
Nearly one in three (30%) US smartphone owners say they plan to use mobile payment offerings such as Apple Pay or Google Wallet for shopping in stores this holiday season, Bluetooth ‘connected card’ maker Stratos’ 2014 Holiday Mobile Payments Survey has found... More