Remember when the big battle in mobile payments was Google versus the carriers? Or more precisely, Google Wallet versus Isis? With AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon all on the Isis team, and some taking technical measures to retard the spread of Wallet, it looked like we were ready for a showdown. But then Google freed Wallet from the constraints of secure hardware elements, Isis turned into ...
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Are you a Windows Phone user who’s been sitting back and watching from a distance all the chaos going on with NFC-based mobile payments on smartphones? Those Android users had been talking about how great NFC payments were for years, and now Apple went and swooped in to bring things mainstream. And of course, as soon as it did, some players with a payment system of their own decided to push back, killing-off NFC payments at ...
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Mobile payments have been around for a while by now, but they haven’t really taken off in the way that a lot of the companies behind them would presumably want. After seeing the carriers and banks backing Isis place so much effort into derailing Google Wallet, we assumed that when Isis finally went nationwide we’d be seeing the big showdown that would ultimately reveal the victor. But instead, things just keep ...
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This fall, there have been two big developments in the availability of mobile payment solutions. For one, we saw Google deliver Android 4.4 with host card emulation, breaking Google Wallet free from carriers and their control over your phone’s secure element. That really gave Wallet the freedom to expand, and on the flip side we also heard that Isis – the big mobile payment competition from the carriers themselves – was nearly ready to make its national debut. Today, the ...
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Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice-president of software engineering, took a jab at Android and NFC at WWDC this year when he said “There’s no need to wander around the room, bumping your phone.” He said this in reference to AirDrop and iBeacon, which was introduced with Apple’s iOS 7. But, before we get into iBeacon, let’s talk about NFC — Near Field Communication. Many smartphones powered by Android, Windows Phone 8, and even BlackBerry come with NFC inside. NFC is awesome! With NFC I can change profiles on my phone for home, work, or car mode. ...
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It seems like every time we talk about Google Wallet, and why the service isn’t seeing anywhere near the usage it should, the subject inevitably comes around to the business interests that have been doing their absolute darnedest to suppress Google’s efforts and keep Wallet away from as many users as possible. Often, that story’s revolved around the carrier-and-financial-institution-led Isis system, their own Google Wallet alternative. Isis has been in ...
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I’ve been an advocate of using Google Wallet since I’ve been able to run the app on my smartphone. Walking into the local convenience store, phone in hand, and paying for my Monster Energy Drink by tapping my phone to their reader was, for lack of another phrase, science-fiction realized! The cashier smiled and chuckled a little — a guy trying to use his phone to make a purchase! Shenanigans! Then the receipt printed out. The look on that cashier’s face was epic: disbelief and jaw-dropping amazement. After that I started looking for places I could pay with my ...
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