What Apple’s Announcement Means to You
PurePayments and VeriFone would like to offer our viewpoint on why the announcement by Apple is so significant and how it impacts you. We view it as a big step forward for the use of mobile payment technology and smart devices in commerce.
Some key takeaways:
- Apple Pay will drive the adoption of NFC
- Apple Pay and NFC provide greater security and speed up payments
- Millions of VeriFone devices in the field already include NFC capabilities
- Merchants who already support tap to pay today will be able to accommodate Apple Pay and other NFC wallets
- NFC provides merchants and consumers with assurance that the transaction is legitimate and authenticated
- By deploying NFC ready terminals now, devices will be EMV-capable when the liability shift is in effect
VeriFone devices are key to enabling NFC at the point of sale. Millions of our devices in the field today already include NFC capabilities. More than 80 percent of the payment products shipped by VeriFone in the U.S. during the most recent quarter are EMV-capable and almost all of those included embedded NFC. VeriFone has long embraced NFC smartphone wallets as a more secure and convenient alternative to traditional credit cards.
Apple is viewed by many industry observers and participants as a catalyst for widespread consumer adoption of NFC-based payment. Apple Pay and integrated NFC is part of iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and the Apple Watch. Apple is the single largest smartphone vendor in the U.S. with more than 40% market share, according to comScore.
Apple has devoted a great deal of effort to making it easy for consumers to add and use their payment credentials with Apple Pay. But making this work requires NFC-capable point of sale devices in physical retail locations.
PurePayments is excited about Apple’s announcement and proud to support the payment and commerce technology that merchants and consumers select, whether it’s NFC, Bluetooth Low Energy, or other emerging technologies.
