Apple Pay may be here sooner than we thought, with reports coming out that various retail managers have been receiving memos for Apple Pay training leading up to the unveiling on October 18th. This mini-leak has revealed a sneak peek of how some features may work. For example, Apple Pay is bundled with Passbook and you will be able to store up to eight credit cards with Apple, which come from what you have on file with iTunes and the option to scan in new cards using the camera.
Apple has partnered with financial institutions to make these murky waters manageable for beginners, which is most everyone using this technology. You can view recent transactions and immediately contact your bank if you see a problem. This relationship also lets your card issuers push new card information directly to the app when it expires and a new one comes up.
Although the app stores your personal information, like email, it will no longer appear on the receipt and the cashiers will still stop asking you for it at checkout. There are still a lot of security features to keep your information safe and Apple swears that it is not interested in tracing shopping habits, that they are unable to trace any specific transaction details to Apple Pay users.
Apple markets Apple Pay as “your wallet without a wallet.” This payment app will store credit and debit card information that works like the card itself by tapping the phone to an NFC pad. So far, it is only available to iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users.
**UPDATE**
The pandemic of 2020 has changed the way many businesses operate, including broadening the use of contactless payments in order to reduce or eliminate the potential for spreading Covid-19. One such contactless payment option that has seen incredible growth is Apple Pay. It’s likely you may have noticed the option the last time you drove through Starbucks, McDonald’s, or Taco Bell.
If you’re a merchant or service provider looking to expand the payment options that your business accepts, it makes sense to consider the popularity of Apple Pay. It could attract a new demographic of customers to your business as it’s a prime payment choice for Millennials and those that prefer contactless payments. If you choose to go with Apple Pay, then read further to learn more about how to accept it.
Following Apple’s announcement, many of our Partners expressed that they didn’t want to be late to the game and inquired about what to expect from an adoption standpoint. While it’s hard to predict exactly how this will play out, Payline Data has placed a high priority on supporting Apple Pay and is well ahead of the demand curve.
Additionally, we want to provide information that provides context to the rollout. We have put together the Payline Data and Apple Pay FAQs for merchants to learn more about Apple Pay and our plans to support this new payment method. For an in-depth and technical overview on Apple Pay, check out Apple’s white paper on iOS security, starting on page 24.
