Roger Fingas
Apple is aiming at getting Apple Pay into more public transit systems, a report suggested on Tuesday, taking advantage of a number of them adding mobile device payments.
Japanese railway JR East is due to launch Apple Pay later this month through its Suica payment system, which Apple has upgraded the iPhone 7, 7 Plus, and Apple Watch Series 2 to support, Bloomberg noted. Models sold in Japan are equipped with FeliCa-compatible NFC chips, which have long allowed mobile payments on other devices in the country.
Earlier in October, New York commuters got the ability to use Apple Pay with the MTA eTix app. While not as convenient as Suica, which can be swiped at turnstiles, users can still buy scannable e-tickets and passes without having to manually enter their card information.
Until recently, the biggest backer of Apple Pay in the transit sector was Transport for London, which operates the London Underground and other systems in the British capital. Like JR East, people using Apple Pay with TfL don't have to buy a separate ticket or pass first.
Apple's interest in the field likely stems from the sheer volume of transactions involved. JR East alone is thought to handle over 17 million passengers per day, and if even a small portion plan to use iPhones or Apple Watches, it could mean many millions of Apple Pay transactions per week, each of them generating the company a small fee.
Andrew Orr
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Wesley Hilliard
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18 Comments
Maybe doesn't sound as exciting as deliveries by drones, internet by balloons etc etc. But public transportation is huge, and will be. So again (as often with Apple) a bit less striking activity, but a structural, longterm healthy business!
So that I am prepared with options should the need arrive, I made an uber account on their app. I was pleased when I discovered I didn't need to give them a credit card number - I can select Apple Pay in the app. I really like that there is one less company with my cc number.
Safeway, OTOH, put in a new terminal system to support the stupid chip/signature system. I asked "does this take Apple Pay or NFC payments?" Blank stare. While clerks might not be the most tech savvy, it is disappointing that their managers/ corporate central didn't even tell them about system they might be asked about.
The transit systems should welcome ApplePay, because once it is in use Siri suggestions will begin mentioning services and activities connected to the transit system. That added information will increase ridership.
More stores, more stores, more stores. Fast food and grocery stores are pretty well represented, but big box stores are not. Total Wine, Costco, Home Depot, etc.
Funnily enough, the person that brought the Oyster Card, the predecessor to Contactless payments, which in turn was the predecessor to Apple Pay on the London tube, was the guy that used to run the NY Subway. Makes you wonder what political forces resist a truly effective system there.
On another note, I always hear comments here about US clerks giving blank stares when asked about contactless payments or PIN & Chip (signature). Why is that, where do these people live, what lack interest do they have in the world around them? I have never ever, not in the dingiest, smallest, dirtiest newsagent in the most faraway little town in England encountered anyone who did not know what contactless was (even if they don't accept it).