Apple forced this. The wireless carriers thought they had a lot more pull than they actually had. And with Apple actively trying to take over the market, and the carriers going almost nowhere, they finally relented to taking a Google buyout and working with Google in the hopes that they can get some positive returns from what was seriously beginning to smell like a almost dead cat.
As for supporting other platforms, that most likely is going to be up to the creators of those platforms. Will the "new" Microsoft work with Google on this? Or will they want to create or use a platform they create? My best guess would be that Google will try to make this work with as many phones as possible. But they cannot force other companies to accept it... At least not until they get the acceptance of Google Wallet at millions of retailers. But that is another story completely.
not necessarily. Monopolizing the NFC payment space across platform would be a good thing for them. If they try and use this to push android, they will just open up space for others, especially apple, given the fact that in the US the share of android isn't absolute domination like in other countries.
Since all the hardware needed to support Google wallet is built into that phone, I would assume that Google would want to support it. But there are number of factors here. Microsoft Phone sales are a miserable 3% of the market. Is Google going to bother supporting it? Is Microsoft going to allow it? Can AT&T override things if Microsoft were to try to go its own way with this, so that it would continue to work with Google? There are a whole lot of things that are going to play out on this. I doubt anyone knows all the answers yet.
Hopefully this makes a real push to get places to accept mobile payments. I've used Google Wallet before and currently have an iPhone so use Apple Pay at some locations. There just needs to be a higher adoption rate. Aside from that, the biggest problem I find is some locations don't work even when they have the readers and the cashier is often clueless as to why it doesn't work and they don't fix it.
Forgot to add that if adoption rate was higher and usage increased it might motivate the locations to make sure their readers are working correctly. When they work they work great, when they don't work you hold up the line waiting for it to tell you it failed.
"mobile payments" are just Contactless payments, and with the October 2015 EMV deadline in the USA more and more terminals are being updated. Pretty much every other country already has widespread contactless payments thanks to EMV already being implemented.
"Pretty much every other country already has widespread contactless payments thanks to EMV already being implemented." EMV compliance does not mean contactless. the last time that I checked, many of the EMV compliant POS (i.e. chip and pin card capable) for sale in the US did not have the contacless model as that adds to the cost. Even in the UK, contactless is still not availble eveywhere.
It doesn't mean contactless but it enables it, and of the EMV terminals I've seen, the vast majority of them have contactless. Maybe some EMV terminals which were deployed at the beginning of EMV but before contactless became common don't have it, but nearly all new ones do.
not really, it depends on whether those who give the POSes push contactless payment or not. And even if they do that, cashiers are clueless so it ends up not being used.
Yes... sometimes you have to sit around and suffer for awhile before you realize that you just do not have the power you thought you had, and relent to working with someone you should have partnered with years ago. And AT&T, Verizon and T-mobile apparently finally reached that point. And Google showed up with enough of the almighty convencer, cash, to help move the decision
So the ISIS Wallet is officially a flop, and the carriers are selling out to Google. Perhaps they see Apple as a common threat and see partnering with Google Wallet (which they needlessly held down the last 4 years) as a way to keep Apple in check.
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SetiroN - Monday, February 23, 2015 - link
They could have done it so much sooner...girishp - Monday, February 23, 2015 - link
I think they were trying to stick to principles, and then finally found a round about way to force carriers.Mark_gb - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
Apple forced this. The wireless carriers thought they had a lot more pull than they actually had. And with Apple actively trying to take over the market, and the carriers going almost nowhere, they finally relented to taking a Google buyout and working with Google in the hopes that they can get some positive returns from what was seriously beginning to smell like a almost dead cat.As for supporting other platforms, that most likely is going to be up to the creators of those platforms. Will the "new" Microsoft work with Google on this? Or will they want to create or use a platform they create? My best guess would be that Google will try to make this work with as many phones as possible. But they cannot force other companies to accept it... At least not until they get the acceptance of Google Wallet at millions of retailers. But that is another story completely.
mebby - Monday, February 23, 2015 - link
I use SoftCard on an AT&T Windows Phone. I am assuming that Google will dump non-Android platforms.Murloc - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
not necessarily. Monopolizing the NFC payment space across platform would be a good thing for them.If they try and use this to push android, they will just open up space for others, especially apple, given the fact that in the US the share of android isn't absolute domination like in other countries.
Mark_gb - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
Since all the hardware needed to support Google wallet is built into that phone, I would assume that Google would want to support it. But there are number of factors here. Microsoft Phone sales are a miserable 3% of the market. Is Google going to bother supporting it? Is Microsoft going to allow it? Can AT&T override things if Microsoft were to try to go its own way with this, so that it would continue to work with Google? There are a whole lot of things that are going to play out on this. I doubt anyone knows all the answers yet.cmdrdredd - Monday, February 23, 2015 - link
Hopefully this makes a real push to get places to accept mobile payments. I've used Google Wallet before and currently have an iPhone so use Apple Pay at some locations. There just needs to be a higher adoption rate. Aside from that, the biggest problem I find is some locations don't work even when they have the readers and the cashier is often clueless as to why it doesn't work and they don't fix it.cmdrdredd - Monday, February 23, 2015 - link
Forgot to add that if adoption rate was higher and usage increased it might motivate the locations to make sure their readers are working correctly. When they work they work great, when they don't work you hold up the line waiting for it to tell you it failed.peterfares - Monday, February 23, 2015 - link
"mobile payments" are just Contactless payments, and with the October 2015 EMV deadline in the USA more and more terminals are being updated. Pretty much every other country already has widespread contactless payments thanks to EMV already being implemented.Speedfriend - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
"Pretty much every other country already has widespread contactless payments thanks to EMV already being implemented."EMV compliance does not mean contactless. the last time that I checked, many of the EMV compliant POS (i.e. chip and pin card capable) for sale in the US did not have the contacless model as that adds to the cost. Even in the UK, contactless is still not availble eveywhere.
peterfares - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
It doesn't mean contactless but it enables it, and of the EMV terminals I've seen, the vast majority of them have contactless. Maybe some EMV terminals which were deployed at the beginning of EMV but before contactless became common don't have it, but nearly all new ones do.Murloc - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
not really, it depends on whether those who give the POSes push contactless payment or not.And even if they do that, cashiers are clueless so it ends up not being used.
peterfares - Monday, February 23, 2015 - link
Thanks AT&T, Verizon, and the "UnCarrier" T-Mobile for delaying this for 4 years! That was great!Mark_gb - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
Yes... sometimes you have to sit around and suffer for awhile before you realize that you just do not have the power you thought you had, and relent to working with someone you should have partnered with years ago. And AT&T, Verizon and T-mobile apparently finally reached that point. And Google showed up with enough of the almighty convencer, cash, to help move the decisionlmcd - Monday, February 23, 2015 - link
They better not kill the WP app. We actually got a WP app but with Google's track record...KPOM - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
So the ISIS Wallet is officially a flop, and the carriers are selling out to Google. Perhaps they see Apple as a common threat and see partnering with Google Wallet (which they needlessly held down the last 4 years) as a way to keep Apple in check.BMNify - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
The windows phone app will soon be killed and pulled from the app store now that Google has acquired softcard.5ark - Tuesday, February 24, 2015 - link
And now Google will kill the Windows Phone Soft Card app.