Love or hate Apple, it seems that as far as mobile payment services are concerned, Apple Pay is fast gaining popularity. Whether or not it’s a novelty that will eventually wear out or whether it represents the new standard in mobile payments remains to be seen, but in the meantime as you might have heard, a bunch of retailers are saying no to the service.
These retailers are instead opting to use CurrentC, an alternative mobile payment method meant to compete against other mobile payment services in the market at the moment, but what’s wrong with letting their customers choose? Well perhaps a hefty fine and contractual obligations might be the reason why.
According to a report from The New York Times, they have reported that anonymous sources have revealed to them that those part of the MCX group (which includes big names such as Walmart and Best Buy) have been expressly forbidden to allow the use of Apple Pay at their retail locations.
It seems that allowing the use of Apple Pay would basically be considered a breach of contract that the retailer has with the group, which in turn would see them incur high penalty fees for doing so. While competition is no doubt welcome, there are many who are questioning the security and motives behind CurrentC.
For example CurrentC will enable purchase tracking which in turn will be used towards loyalty programs where coupons and special offers will be offered to customers. Apple Pay on the other hand is anonymous and will work with existing and compatible POS terminals and will not share purchasing metrics with retailers.
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