What's New in Payments

Apple cuts deals with card issuers?

Apple will be getting special rates from five US card issuers on mobile payments made by its device users, according to well-connected payments advisor Tom Noyes, and customers will use a combination of Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), NFC and Touch ID to make payments in stores... More


Graceland uses Bluetooth beacons to guide Elvis fans

Elvis fans can see "room-specific content" as they tour the King's mansion with a borrowed iPad

Graceland, the former home of Elvis Presley and now a major tourist attraction, is offering every visitor the use of an iPad that works in conjunction with Bluetooth beacons placed around the Memphis mansion to help guests navigate the attraction and “trigger additional content including videos, trivia and more.”... More




JD Sports adds BLE beacons

UK sports fashion chain JD has installed Bluetooth beacons at its new concept store in Manchester’s Trafford Centre, letting customers who have downloaded the JD app “access exclusive store content and shop from the app before paying in-store.” The store also features eight multi-channel kiosks and a social media wall, and staff have been equipped with iPads “to assist with customers’ enquiries.”... More



Estimote unveils BLE stickers

Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon maker Estimote has introduced a new product category that it calls “nearables”, stickers that contain a Bluetooth Smart controller, an ARM processor and both an accelerometer and a temperature sensor... More




Levi’s Stadium adds BLE beacons

The Levi’s Stadium in San Francisco has installed 1,700 Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons that can be used “to give people pinpoint directions to their seats as well as to any other place in the stadium,” Time reports... More





GameStop deploys BLE in stores

Video game retailer GameStop is deploying Shelfbucks beacons in test markets including Austin and College Station, Texas this month to deliver offers and relevant data to a shopper’s smartphone running a mobile app developed by BestFit Mobile... More


BLE guides the blind at SFO

Visually-impaired travellers at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) are now being guided through terminals via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons supplied by Indoo.rs... More