Apple is taking steps to position Apple Pay as a comprehensive digital payments platform, and will later this year move beyond touchless transactions and in-app purchases with support for mobile websites, a report said Wednesday.
A new survey has found the vast majority of U.S. retailers with EMV chip-card-compatible credit card readers aren't using that functionality, presenting a major hurdle for acceptance of tap-to-pay services like Apple Pay.
The CEO of France-based carrier Orange has revealed that the company's proprietary tap-to-pay wallet Orange Cash will arrive on the iPhone in a few weeks. That's led to speculation that Apple could be preparing to allow third-party apps and services to access the iPhone's NFC chip.
Apple on Thursday added a number of financial institutions to the official list supporting Apple Pay, including three more in the service's fledgling Chinese market.
Customers of Ally Bank can now use their debit card with Apple Pay, allowing secure contactless payments with iPhone and Apple Watch at compatible points of sale.
Apple Pay users can now pay at the pump at 6,000 ExxonMobil gas stations, though it's through the official Speedpass+ app, instead of a tap-to-pay transaction.
Apple on Friday added another 27 names to the list of U.S. card issuers supporting Apple Pay, most notably expanding support for PNC cards to the bank's Global Investment Servicing division.
Chinese consumers have flocked to Apple's contactless payment solution in the weeks since its debut, with one bank reporting that more than 3 million cards were activated on Apple Pay in the first 2 days of availability.
A new poll of merchant processing partners has found that Apple Pay is by far the most desired tap-to-pay method, easily exceeding demand for rival services like Android Pay, PayPal and Samsung Pay.
A report on Monday suggests Apple Pay is on track to integrate wider availability in Canada, Brazil and parts of Asia with help from MasterCard, which will expand credit card support into those regions later this year.
MasterCard on Thursday announced the return of a promotion letting people ride the Transport for London network for free or at a discount each Monday, so long as they pay for their trips using Apple Pay.
China Mobile, the world's largest carrier, added 23.3 million new 4G users last month, reaching 335.6 million 4G subscribers in total. That's a 214 percent increase over the previous year, and suggests that predictions of collapse in iPhone growth due to economic troubles in China are far fetched.
In order to launch Apple Pay in the lucrative China market, Apple agreed to halve its normal transaction fee for the country's banks, a report said on Monday.
A rush from Chinese users to sign up for contactless transactions via Apple Pay has taken its toll on the service's servers, preventing consumers from adding their credit and debit cards [updated].
Apple launched its Apple Pay mobile payments service in China on Thursday, opening the door to a vast market of smartphone users, as well as newfound competition in an established touchless systems segment leaders Tencent and Alibaba.
The NFC Forum — an industry lobbying group that counts Apple as a board member — on Wednesday announced a new partnership with the American Public Transportation Association that will see the two groups working to broaden NFC support among public transit operators in the U.S.
Apple Pay will indeed be available in China on Feb. 18, according to state media, as well as social media posts from representatives at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.
Apple Pay could be on the verge of launching in China and France, with the former debut potentially happening as soon as Feb. 18, a pair of reports indicated on Monday.
Apple reported an unusual network problem on Wednesday, preventing some owners of Visa credit or debit cards from adding them to Apple Pay.
App developers are increasingly adopting Apple Pay as a fast, convenient way to enable purchases, often as an alternative to standing in line at a store's cash register or manually entering in billing and shipping information.
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Mikey Campbell
Neil Hughes
Roger Fingas
AppleInsider Staff
Daniel Eran Dilger
