Mobile payments survey: Apple Pay leads Google Pay in usage and interest among Millennials and GenZ in 2018 — Dealspotr — “In-store, a surprising 11% of Millennials and 10% of GenZers have used Apple Pay to pay for items in the checkout line. Apple Pay (10%) was significantly more popular than rival payment platforms such as Google’s Android Pay (4%) and Samsung’s Samsung Pay (2%)… 15% of Millennials and 15% of Generation Z have used Apple Pay to pay when shopping online (vs 9% and 9% for Google Pay).”
Google Pay goes live in Slovakia
Slovakia becomes first to use Google Pay — The Slovak Spectator — “Google is launching its new application, Google Pay, in Slovakia, making it the first country ever to introduce the revamped service… Google Pay is available as of February 28 to clients of Slovenská Sporiteľňa, mBank, Poštová Banka and J&T Banka. Soon, clients of 365.bank will also join.”
Commonwealth Bank of Australia adds support for Samsung Pay
Samsung Pay now available for Commonwealth Bank customers — Commonwealth Bank of Australia — “Commonwealth Bank customers will now have access to Samsung’s contactless payments platform, Samsung Pay… Today’s announcement follows CBA’s partnership with Google in November to offer Android Pay on compatible devices at almost 800,000 stores across Australia. CBA customers have also been able to make payments on the go with Fitbit and Garmin’s new payment-enabled smartwatches.”
Google Pay replaces Android Pay app starting today
Say hello to a better way to pay, by Google — Google — “Longtime Android Pay fans, fear not: the features you love aren’t going away. You’ll still get all your bank’s perks and protections, plus an extra layer of security, since Google Pay doesn’t share your actual card number when you pay in stores… And more features are coming. If you live in the US or the UK, you’ll be able to use it to send and request money within the next few months.”
Line Pay tops mobile payments adoption poll in Taiwan
Line Pay top mobile payment system in Taiwan: Survey — Focus Taiwan — “25.2% of respondents who used mobile payment systems favoured Line Pay, ahead of Apple Pay provided by Apple Inc which was used by 17.9% of those surveyed. The survey found Jko Pay provided by Taiwan’s Jkos Network Co came in third, taking a 10.9% share, followed by Android Pay operated by Google Inc with 9.9% share, and E Sun Wallet provided by E Sun Commercial Bank with 5.2%.”
Over half of US consumers are now using a P2P payments service
US consumers and debit: Shift to online may inhibit use — Mercator Advisory Group — “57% of all respondents and 78% of young adults aged 18 to 34 use person-to-person payment services such as PayPal, Venmo, Google Wallet, Facebook Messenger, and others accessible online and in-app by mobile devices and nearly half of them use a P2P service at least once a month.”
Mobile payments drive 60% growth in demand for NFC phones in Russia
In Russia, booming sales of smartphones that support contactless payments — Vedomosti (translation) — “Demand for them is being driven by the emergence of payment systems from Apple, Samsung and Google. Sales of smartphones that support contactless payments using NFC technology (near field communication), in 2017 compared to 2016, grew by 60% in Russia… Over the past year in Russia, about 8.3m such devices were sold.”
Google to combine Android Pay and Google Wallet into single Google Pay service
Bringing it all together with Google Pay — Google — “We’re excited to announce we’ll be bringing together all the different ways to pay with Google, including Android Pay and Google Wallet, into a single brand: Google Pay. With Google Pay, it’ll be easier for you to use the payment information saved to your Google Account, so you can speed through checkout with peace of mind. Over the coming weeks, you’ll see Google Pay online, in store, and across Google products, as well as when you’re paying friends.”
Trimet to roll out world’s first integration of transit ticketing card with Android Pay
Portland-Vancouver’s Hop Fastpass partners with Google, becoming the first virtual transit fare card available within Android Pay globally — TriMet — “TriMet and Google are teaming up for a first — making Hop Fastpass the first virtual transit card available in Android Pay starting early next year… In December 2017, a select group of TriMet, C-Tran, and Portland Streetcar beta testers will be able to load a virtual Hop card into Android Pay — giving them the ability to tap their phones to pay for their fares and receive all the benefits of a physical Hop card.”
Google reports 12m Tez mobile payments users in India
Google for India: Building India-first products and features — Google — “Our India-first mobile payments app Tez has seen huge growth in its first 10 weeks. Tez has processed over 140m transactions from nearly 12 million active users. There are more than 525,000 merchants already on Tez, using it to take payments, pay their suppliers or transfer money to employees… In the coming weeks, Tez will start rolling out a customized experience to pay bills right in the app. More than 70 billers will be supported, including utilities and direct-to-home service providers.”
Google promotes Android Pay with Justice League bots
Unlock your superpowers with Android Pay and Justice League — Google — “If you use Android Pay today, you’re in for a surprise. Like our beloved animations of space explorers, Halloween haunts, and Wimbledon players in the past, five of our Android bots have channelled their superpowers to become Justice League Super Heroes in celebration of the movie… You’ll have the chance to collect Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Cyborg or Aquaman when you pay in stores.”
Android Pay goes live in Czech Republic and Brazil
Android Pay goes local in Ukraine, Czech Republic, Brazil and Slovakia — Google — “A few weeks ago, we launched Android Pay in Ukraine. Today, it’s available in Czech Republic and Brazil, and soon it’ll be live in Slovakia, too.”
Android Pay to let users track all their card purchases?
Android Pay appears to be testing the ability to see all card purchases, even those not done on your phone — 9to5Google — “The Android Pay app appears to be testing out a new feature for ‘full purchase history’. In short, this new feature pulls your entire transaction history from your card and displays it right alongside Android Pay purchases. This new setting on Android Pay appears to only work for specific cards, though. In this first case, it works with an American Express Cash card.”
Android Pay goes live in Ukraine
Android Pay in Ukraine — Pay for your purchases in just a few seconds — Google Ukraine (Translation) — “We are pleased to announce that Android users in Ukraine can now not only search and receive information at the right time with the Google app, optimize their Google Maps routes and enjoy various apps on Google Play, but also quickly and securely make purchases offline and online using Android Pay… Today, Android Pay in Ukraine only works with Mastercard and Visa cards issued by PrivatBank, but the list of banks will be constantly replenished.”
Google reports 7.5m users of its Tez audio QR mobile payments app
Edited transcript of Alphabet earnings conference call — Yahoo Finance — “To help millions of people, we are building products specifically designed for local markets in Asia. In India last month, we launched Tez, a mobile payments and commerce app that already has more than 7.5 million users who have made more than 30m transactions. I’m really excited about the potential this brings for India’s mostly cash-based economy.”
Pay with Google goes live on Android devices
Pay with Google and speed through checkout — Google — “When you pay with Google, you can use any of the credit or debit cards you’ve added to your Google Account from products like Google Play, YouTube, Chrome or Android Pay. Google sends the merchant your payment info and shipping address using the information from your account — no typing required. Then, the merchant will handle all the details just like any other purchase… Got an app or website? You can implement it with just a few lines of code, and it’s free — we don’t charge any transaction fees.”
More than 1,000 financial institutions now offer Android Pay
Android Pay is now compatible with over 1,000 financial institutions — Android Authority — “Today, Google updated the support page for Android Pay with 16 more financial institutions. That pushes the total up to 1,012.”
Google drops NFC Smart Unlock due to ‘extremely low usage’
Google reveals why it killed NFC Smart Lock in Android — BetaNews — “It recently came to light that Google had killed off NFC Smart Lock in Android — without telling anyone. Now the company has come clean about just why the feature was given the chop. Google says that ‘in the case of NFC unlock, we’ve seen extremely low usage,’ adding that there are now many more ways of unlocking Android devices. But while Google points to features such as on-body detection, fingerprint scanning and Trusted Places, fans of the missing feature say that none of these are comparable.”
Google drops NFC unlock feature for Android devices
Google quietly discontinues NFC Smart Unlock without explanation — BetaNews — “The feature, which makes it possible to unlock a phone with an NFC device such as a ring or bracelet, has been discontinued without explanation.”