The demo animation on the sparse Square Cash site shows an example transaction, with one person sending a $25 payment to a friend in return for drinks at dinner. The concept appears to be a more individual approach to mobile money than the business Square is best known for, where an iPhone or iPad dongle is used to swipe credit or debit cards, and intended for merchants to process payments from general customers.

Instead, Square Cash appears to work more like PayPal or Cenmo, or indeed Google’s recent integration of Google Wallet into Gmail. There, Gmail users can send payments to friends by simply clicking a button in their email inbox.

Just as with those other services, Square Cash requires that both users be signed up to begin with. Then, transactions are sent directly between debit cards; the sender uses their regular email account to send a message with the sum involved in the subject line, and as long as they CC Square Cash in the email, the money is exchanged.

The recipient gets a similar email, with a link they can click to approve the exchange. Until that link is clicked, the sender can cancel the payment; there’s a $0.50 cost per payment, charged to the sender.

That’s slightly higher than Google’s minimum fee of $0.30 – based on a 2.9-percent processing fee – but if you’re sending more than around $17.58 then Square’s set cost works out cheaper.

There’s no telling when Square Cash will launch publicly, and the company itself is giving little away.

VIA: TechCrunch

In fact, Google CEO Larry Page is said to be responsible for killing off the card plans, something he’s believed to have been skeptical about for some time. Page “felt it did not press forward innovation as payments startups like Square have done” AllThingsD’s sources claim.

The demise of the Google Wallet credit card hasn’t just shaken up Google IO next week, but staffing within the company. Head of Google Wallet Osama Bedier was confirmed to have left the company yesterday, “pushed out” it’s said in favor of shifting the division into the ads and commerce team. Sridhar Ramaswarmy is now directly in charge of Wallet.

Although the physical card won’t see the light of day, for a while if ever, that’s not to say Google Wallet is going anywhere. The system will be updated with new rewards, offers, and loyalty points, it’s said, with more merchants coming on-board to accept the NFC payments. What won’t be happening any time soon is integration with Google Now, though, with the teams described as “siloed” in a way which has prevented data sharing.

Google had supposedly gone so far as to bake physical card support into the new Google Wallet app, and prototypes of the cards had already been produced. As per a usual card, they included a magnetic stripe and raised numbers; despite suggestions that Google would launch its own bank, the actual project was to partner with existing banks, and source behavioral data around shopping patterns through third-parties, rather than directly from Visa and MasterCard.

While augmented reality wearables like Google’s headset are technically impressive, Dorsey expects more mundane examples of body-worn gadgetry to do better in the mass market. Part of that, the mobile payments service founder suggests, is due to the fact that tech you wear on your wrist can be associated more readily with geek-jewelry.

“I think the movement you see around Fitbit, Up and FuelBand, that seems to be the next step in wearable” he argued. “So something on the wrist that feels natural, almost feels a bit like jewelry.”

Some have taken Dorsey’s apparent affection for smartwatch-style tech as an indicator that Square will explore an app for such gadgets, potentially allowing for payments to be made without having to pull your phone out of your pocket. Square is best known for the credit card swipe dongles that plug into iPhones and iPads; however, the company has also been exploring other, less traditional methods of customer recognition, including geofenced apps that flash up the user’s face on the cashier’s terminal, allowing them to be recognized in a more passive manner.

For Glass to fit into daily use, Dorsey suggests, the technology will need to assimilate more readily, as well as potentially give the market time to come to terms with a computer on your face. “I think it might be a 10-year answer, but not in the next five years” he concludes. “Maybe if they’re in sunglasses or what not.”

The patent, filed back in 2009, argues that many users prefer not to give out personally-identifiable details as a way of avoiding potential data theft or spamming. In contrast, Amazon’s system uses a series of temporary tokens that can be exchanged, either with the sender triggering the payment or the recipient requesting it, but with no exchange of personal information.

“It is commonplace for entities to conduct an electronic payment to complete a transaction. In a typical transaction, information about each party is typically exchanged to facilitate the electronic transaction. Some of this information may be personal or private information that a person may not desire to share with a stranger. For example, a customer may have to provide their address and telephone number during execution of an electronic payment” Amazon patent

In practice, if you had to give a friend a payment of $20, you could send a text message to Amazon’s server with the text “PAY 20″. A return message would have a specially created code, tied to your account, which – when your friend texted it to Amazon from their phone – would credit their account with the appropriate amount. Amazon suggests that the code could contain part of the recipient’s phone number: not enough to identify them, but enough to ensure that it would be unlikely that someone else could use the code from their own phone.

More complex versions of the system, meanwhile, would allow limitations to be placed on the temporary codes. For instance, Amazon describes how they could be set with expiration dates, so that recipients would have to use them before a certain periods; alternatively, a single code could be valid for multiple redemptions (potentially a limited number) such as to operate as an anonymous payment plan. Something other than money could be exchanged, too; Amazon suggests tokens, download credit, or other virtual currency.

Of course, any such system would require the intermediary infrastructure be set up, and enabled for accepting payments in multiple currencies across multiple locations. Amazon already has such a system, given its retail presence across the world, while its mobile ambitions have already been revealed in the form of the Kindle Fire range and the upcoming near-200 country expansion of the Amazon Appstore.

MLB was among the first partners of Apple’s Passbook when the service was first announced earlier last year at WWDC, and the Cupertino-based company showed off the MLB ticketing system during the event (as pictured above). It’ll probably be only a matter of time before all MLB teams climb aboard.

The MLB teams that are now supporting Passbook include the Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates, Detroit Tigers, and the Chicago Cubs. The San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, Kansas City Royals, and the Boston Red Sox have previously already supported the service. Three more teams will announce support for Passbook later this year, marking a total of 14 teams for the 2013 season.

MLB also re-launched its At Bat app for iOS and Android for the 2013 season, complete with cross-platform support, sortable statistics, footage from past games, and of course live-streamed games over video and radio. The app is a free download, but a subscription will cost you $20 for the season, or $3 per month.

[via GigaOM]

Just like Passbook, Samsung Wallet offers location-based push notifications that alert users when they can use the various items that are stored in their Wallet account. Plus, the app provides real-time updates for various things like membership points and flight changes to boarding passes, and the app can display bar codes to be scanned.

Samsung already has a handful of US partners on board, including Walgreens, MLB, Expedia, Booking.com, Hotels.com, and Lufthansa. The app’s interface looks freakishly similar to Apple’s own Passbook app, which isn’t too surprising, although we’re sure that Samsung included some of their own flavorings into the app.

Currently, Samsung Wallet does not support payments, but it does support NFC, and it’s likely that the company will partner up with a credit card company to offer NFC payments in the future at some point. The beta API is now available for developers, with a launch date set for March 7. Samsung is expected to announce the Galaxy S IV on March 14, so the company’s Wallet could be ready in time for the new smartphone.

[via The Next Web]

Samsung began a revolution with NFC when it launched devices capable of S-Beam. Now it plans on taking it a step forward by enabling NFC mobile payments with its future devices. It will load the Visa payWave application on all of its future devices, which will allow consumers to “wave and pay” for their transactions. Dr. Won-Pyo Hong, president and head of the Media Solution Center at Samsung Electronics, said, “Samsung has been a pioneer in NFC devices and is again leading the way in enabling NFC-based mobile payments. The partnership with Visa represents a step towards a global mobile payment platform.”

Alongside Samsung’s devices being able to make NFC mobile payments, Samsung will also allow banks to be able to load personal account information onto Samsung’s devices over-the-air. The transfer of information will be secured by a security chip inside of Samsung’s devices that utilizes the Visa Mobile Provisioning Service linked to Samsung’s Key Management System.

ABI Research believes that 1.95 billion devices will be NFC-enabled by the year 2017. Samsung wants to be the jump-starter that makes NFC-mobile payments commonplace. With it’s huge market share, and large number of loyal followers, Samsung is one of the best candidates to popularize NFC-payments in countries like the United States.

[via Business Wire]

A second version of the bundle, priced at $599, throws in a Star Micronics thermal printer, which can be used to give physical receipts. However, the Square Register app itself can email receipts if people want to do away with paper. The only actual Square product in the bundles is the Reader dongle itself, which plugs into the headphone socket on your iPad or iPhone; the iPad stand is Heckler Design’s WindFall, while the cash drawer is the APG Vasario 1616.

Since the system is modular, there’s plenty of flexibility as to how you set it up. All of the components can be left out on the countertop, or hidden mostly away, so that only the iPad itself is visible to customers. Since there are two Readers included, you can also go mobile with a second device, roaming the aisles in search of quavering customers.

The bundle is the latest push by Square to promote its mobile payments system, and follows a deal with Verizon last month and a long-term agreement with Starbucks which will see it replace the coffee company’s existing payments provider. Beyond the $299 kit price, the only ongoing charge is the 2.75-percent cut of each transaction that Square takes.

[via TIME]

The Square Card Reader requires no contracts, you’ll have no minimum cash transactions needed ever, and there are no set-up fees. Essentially you’ll be heading in to your local Verizon outlet, tossing down a $10 bill and some change, and heading out the door with a brand new Square Card Reader of your very own. The way Square makes cash is to get a bit of a percentage for each transaction you make with the reader from that point on.

The fees you’ll be working with here is 2.75% of every swiped transaction or 2.5% and 15 cents for each sale that’s manually keyed in. All funds moved with your Square account are automatically deposited in your real-world bank account within (or around) 24 hours, and your whole account can be managed online. In addition to squareup.com, you’ll be able to check your balance and work with basically all of your account information right out of the box with one of several Square apps.

The iOS and Android versions of this app are essentially the same, with the iPad-specific app bringing on some additional management tools you’ll only otherwise be able to access in a web browser. Verizon begins selling the Square Card Reader on the 31st of January, 2013, and you’ll be able to pick them up nationally at most Verizon Wireless stores.

Will you be joining in on the Square fun? Or are you all about the NFC payments with your Google Wallet? If you’re an iPhone or iPad user, have you found any alternatives that you’d suggest as more awesome than Square? Let us know!

[via Verizon]

PayPal announced today that 23 large national retailers have begun participating in PayPal Now, and the service is now available at 18,000 retail locations around the United States. PayPal Now officially launched back in May of 2012 to extend PayPal’s payment platform into physical stores. Shoppers simply enter their phone number and a pin code during checkout instead of swiping their credit or debit card.

The service is definitely useful for people who forget their wallets, or for those who just prefer to keep all of their transaction under one roof. There are also opportunities to earn digital coupons and loyalty points by choosing this method of payment, so there’s definitely an incentive to use the new platform other than convenience.

Square is obviously PayPal’s biggest competitor, with its own plans in the retail realm that includes a major partnership with Starbucks. It’ll be interesting to see where the mobile payment industry goes from here. Google Wallet is making the rounds, and while it’s not yet a well-known avenue for payments, it just could be a matter of time before we see it take off.

Google’s own Help section of its Google Wallet website refers to the Google Wallet card not once, but twice. If you click on “Eligible Devices” on the left-hand sidebar, you’ll see the mention of the Google Wallet Card. The company notes that all Android devices running Android 2.3.3 or higher are able to download the Google Wallet app for use with the Google Wallet card.

It seems Google thinks that while mobile payments are the way of the future, some people still may prefer using plastic. Thanks to last week’s Google Wallet app update leak, the Google Wallet card is said to be a card that replaces your real credit or debit cards, and you can assign the card to any one of your credit cards at any time.

Of course, we’re still not sure when Google will releases these things to the public, but we have to say that we can’t wait. And since you don’t need your actual phone to pay for things through Google Wallet, since you’ll now have a physical card, we’re wondering if Google will release a Google Wallet app for iOS at some point.

[via TechCrunch]

Transaction rates depend on whether the customer is paying by credit or debut card: credit cards are charged 2.95-percent of the total amount, while debit cards incur a set fee of £0.75 each time. The mPOS PINpad itself costs £150 ($240) or, alternatively, O2 will give it to you cellphone-subsidy-style for £15 per month over 12 months.

After you’ve paid for it, there are no ongoing hardware costs, just the transaction fees whenever you use it. Both payments and refunds are possible via the app, which works with Android 2.1+ or BlackBerry 4.1+ devices; an iOS version is in the pipeline.

As with Square, the app allows customers to put in their email address and have a receipt sent directly to their inbox; alternatively, it can be done via SMS. The app itself keeps track of all recent payments, and O2 says its payment partner Global Payments will clear funds into users’ accounts within three days.

Mobile payments systems have grown in popularity in North America, with Square recently inking a considerable deal with Starbucks to handle its US store transactions. However, the use of chip & PIN cards in Europe, rather than the older signature system, has delayed introduction of US hardware to the market, something O2 appears to be keen to take advantage of.

Features for this point-of-sale app include the ability to track employee labor, map out tables or serving courses, send orders to one or more kitchen stations, control cash drawers and receipt printers, and configure various menus, including pricing. In addition to offering the various features a restaurant or bar may need, Breadcrumb also allows real-time monitoring of reports, which are updated with every interaction with the app. Reports can be viewed by authorized users anywhere via a web browser.

Breadcrumb is only available for the iPad, which is perhaps disappointing to those who prefer Android, although the limitation makes sense from a stability standpoint. The variety of hardware available that runs Android – some of which is very low end – could result in bugs and glitches that, while not explicitly Breadcrumb’s fault, would no doubt be associated with the app instead the hardware. Whether the app will ever be available for Android is unknown.

Pricing is split into four tiers. For small businesses, the $99 pricing tier allows Breadcrumb to be run on one iPad, while the $199 tier authorizes 2 iPads, the $299 tier authorizes 5 iPads, and the $399 tier authorizes 10 iPads. All four pricing options include unlimited users and free updates.

[via Groupon]

Square and Starbucks announced their deal to use the mobile payments upstart back in August. At the same time, Starbucks cut out its existing credit and debit card processing partner, replacing them with Square’s backend, and invested $25m in the firm.

As the mobile app provision increases, Square and Starbucks will make buying a cup of coffee even more straightforward. Passbook will automatically flag up the Starbucks Card on the iOS device’s lock screen when they enter a store, and they’ll be able to pay by “swiping” their phone.

The agreement was lauded as reducing Starbucks’ processing costs as well as increasing Square’s footprint as a payments service provider and making it more likely that users would take the time to install the mobile app. However, the addition of tip support – although tardy after payments in general have been accepted – will offset any shortfall in tipping to store staff themselves, who might suffer from a reduction in cash payments for smaller amounts.

Square won’t say exactly how much it has raised in this round, though a spokesperson told AllThingsD that it exceeds $200m. $25m of that is from Starbucks, in a deal which will see the coffee chain switch its payment processing to Square’s system, and eventually allow customers to buy their coffee with apps on their smartphones and tablets.

According to ATD’s source, the final investment valued Square at $3.25bn. The company says it processes $8bn in payments annually.

Details on which will be the first country outside of the US to get the Square system have not been revealed, though the European Chip & PIN approach to payments may well cause some headaches along the way. Rather than a regular swipe-and-sign approach, as in the US, European payment terminals scan an integrated chip in the credit card, and then rely on PIN number authentication. That will require a new design of Square scanner at the very least.

The disappointing announcement comes from Isis head of marketing Ryan Hughes, who said in an interview with CNET that the company is more concerned about launching the service the right way instead of as quickly as possible. He also assures that the Isis team hasn’t hit any major setbacks, but instead they’re going down a “punch list” of necessary features and goals. The reason for the delay wasn’t revealed, but it seems like getting Isis ready for its trial run phase is simply taking longer than expected.

We’re told that we don’t have much longer to wait until that trial run launches, however. That seems to suggest that Isis is quite far along in the development process, but its developers just need a little more time to iron out the kinks. Hughes says that he’ll have more news for us in October, and it’s likely that announcement in October will be when we’ll find out more about the state of Isis.

Even when Isis does launch, it’ll have a fight ahead of it. Google Wallet has enjoyed a lot of exposure since its debut, but that hasn’t helped with the slow uptake from consumers. Many phones these days are coming with NFC capabilities, but one of the most notable handsets that will be lacking NFC is the freshly-revealed iPhone 5. Hughes, however, says that Isis team is working on a sleeve that will allow iPhone 5 owners to use an NFC chip with their new handset, but at any rate, he claims that one device not utilizing NFC probably won’t do anything to slow the adoption of mobile wallet services. Keep an ear to SlashGear for more information on Isis!

However, regulators obviously found no aspect of the plans to be worrying, and so the three networks are free to push ahead with the JV. The goal is to not only put together a payments system, allowing subscribers to charge items to their handsets instead of using cards or cash, but to “provide a single contact point for media agencies, retailers and brands, enabling them to create campaigns that will reach millions of opted-in mobile users.”

The service will be cross-platform and cross-operator, though each will be building its own user-facing mobile payments brand on top of the shared underlying technology. “For consumers, this means they will be able to receive the discounts and offers that they want to receive from the brands that are relevant to them” the trio says.

As for Three’s complaints that it had not been invited to join the joint venture, Everything Everywhere, O2 and Vodafone UK claim their rival is very welcome to get involved. “The shareholders remain committed to making the JV services open to all,” the three said in a statement, “including all operators and MVNOs, 3rd party publishers, banks, advertising agencies, retailers and any company that wants to engage in this space.”

There’s no indication of when the mobile commerce platform will launch in the UK.

With this new mobile payments system, Orange Galaxy S III owners will be able to link any Mastercard or Visa debit or credit card to their phone. Once that’s been done, those users can then make contactless mobile payments of up to £20. Using the service only requires that you download an app and link your card to Barclaycard, and then after that you should be good to go (provided you have a Galaxy S III with an Orange SIM card in it). Those who sign up for the service between September 5 and October 5 will get a free £50 to spend, so if you’re planning on signing up for this system, better to do it sooner rather than later.

In a statement today, Barclaycard’s head of digital payments Tom Gregory said that this service will work with all UK bank accounts. “Barclaycard is committed to making paying for things faster, safer and easier,” Gregory said. “With the launch of Quick Tap payments on the Samsung Galaxy SIII, Barclaycard is bringing a safe and secure new way to pay to customers of all UK banks. Mobile payments are safe and have a full fraud guarantee and we’ve seen ever growing numbers of people using contactless to make quick and secure payments of up to £20.”

Once this deal goes live on September 5, you’ll be able to pick up a Samsung Galaxy S III with Quick Tap from Orange stores, orange.co.uk, and Orange telesales. Overall, it doesn’t sound like too bad a service, especially when they’re giving £50 to early adopters. Be sure to have a glance at our story timeline below for more information on Orange and Barclaycard!

But what does this all mean for you, the Starbucks user? It means that you’ll be able to pay for your drink (and your snack, if you’re into that), much quicker, simpler, and more digital than ever before – soon! While Square is already company that’s out on the market today, this meaning you can use the little square gadget they’ve made for smartphone and tablet users in stores already, they’ve got big plans for Starbucks.

First, with Starbucks investing in Square, development between the two will be advancing at a much faster pace. Once Starbucks is ready to adopt “Pay with Square” technology, they’ll be listed in Square’s system which uses GPS location technology to identify nearby Square-ready businesses. Starbucks giant investment will mean much more than likely that they’ll be featured – at least in the coffee section.

With this system, you’ll be able to “check in” at a Starbucks before you arrive.

If you are checked in, the barista has only to identify your face and match it up with the user they’ve got in the system – and there you have it. You’ll be able to order whatever you like and the cost will be charged to your account. No devices necessary outside the first check-in on your phone. No credit cards or cash needed, either, this perhaps the most important element of the whole system.

Square doesn’t currently provide businesses with purchase history, but with Square’s hopes for next-level personalization, it is possible that you’ll be able to walk in to your favorite store in the future and walk back out without even having to specify what you want.

The usual, coffee jerk!

And there you have it!

Starbucks locations will also be added to the Square Directory, the list of locations which support the system, while the same data will also be leveraged for Starbucks. Eventually, Starbucks Digital Network and Starbucks mobile payment app users will be able to see the same range of Square locations in their apps.

According to the coffee chain, switching to Square for US credit and debit card transactions will reduce its payment processing costs in addition to giving the system itself a far higher profile among consumers. That’s something Square CEO Jack Dorsey is particularly keen on, going so far as to point out that even Starbucks rivals will benefit from the greater attention.

“When Starbucks builds the Square Directory into their apps and in-store Digital Network, it gives Square new visibility, driving more customers to opt-in to Square” Dorsey wrote in an open letter to users. “And with nearly 7,000 Starbucks stores soon accepting Square, these new payers will be able to find your business (including coffeehouses) and pay with their name, building community and creating value.”

In addition to the $25m investment, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz will join the Square board of directors. You can download the Pay with Square app here, for iOS or Android devices.

And unfortunately for ViVOtech, the future brought an extreme decline in excitement for NFC payments and a very sluggish path to bringing this to the masses. Vivotech raised tens of millions of dollars mainly to manufacture credit card terminals that could accept mobile payments. Now, however, it is looking to sell off that huge chunk of its business. It will still exist, but only as a much smaller software company.

Instead of NFC, which requires users to have a special piece of hardware in their phone as well as an accepted credit card account, and also required retailers to have the necessary equipment, and not to be outdone also requires users to have a special app installed on their phone, the mobile payment space has become dominated by mobile credit card terminals, allowing peer-to-peer payments and also software-based alternatives that don’t require new hardware. Poor Vivotech…

[via GigaOM]

The CEO of VeriFone Doug Bergeron was recently asked about Square’s new round of $200 million venture capital funding, an event that places the company’s valuation at $3.25 billion. Bergeron simply said, “Pets.com.” That’s obviously a reference to the bungled pet supply website which became the poster child of the dot-con boom of the later 1990s. It went through a $300 million round of VC funding and made Super Bowl ads before it just completely collapsed.

So clearly that’s what Bergeron sees as the fate of Square. He is brushing it off as just another fad that’s growing too big and too fast for its own good. This isn’t exactly the first time VeriFone has showed a lack of respect to its new competitor. Last year, Bergeron publicly blasted Square as facilitating fraud and credit card skimming. In other words, there isn’t a very cozy relationship between the two companies.

[via American Banker]

It seems so simple – it’s a dongle that attaches to the headphone jack of a smartphone and turns the phone into a mobile credit card terminal. It lets anyone – small businesses or even individual users – accept plastic from friends or customers. Square has turned that into an enormous business, and it has managed to break apart monopolies that used to exist in the world of credit card processing companies.

This latest round of funding will be Square’s third in just the last two years. The company has been very busy, and of course it can’t rest on its laurels because every other player in the financial space is trying to create its own Square rival, so Square is staying on its toes and continuing to innovate. One of its biggest success stories was getting approval to include Square credit card readers in New York City taxicabs, where Verifone previously had monopolistic power and charged cab drivers fees that were above industry averages. That’s just the beginning of the Square revolution.

[via VentureBeat]

The research group also noted that prepaid debit cards are also growing at an almost unparalleled rate. Why group that finding in with mobile payments? Because it all points to a decrease in the monopolistic power that major banks have been getting used to for decades. For the first time in most people’s lives, you can now go to a store, complete a transaction, and not have any cash on hand or a credit or debit card, thanks to mobile payments.

This means that players like Chase, Citibank, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and more need to be on their toes and innovate like they never have before. So what’s next? IDC practice director Aaron McPherson said, “Based on our results, we expect to see continued growth in open-loop prepaid cards and mobile payments next year, and believe that the improvements being offered in electronic-bill delivery will break electronic-bill presentment and payment out of its doldrums as well.”

[via QR Code Press]

The company has launched a new service called NCR Silver, which it describes as “bringing our big-business know-how to small business.” But it isn’t just going the exact same way as Square or Coin. It wants to offer complete, full-fledged point-of-sale solutions to merchants. NCR does of course have a mobile credit card reader for iPhones and iPads.

But it also has a device that allows iPads to scan barcodes. It also offers an “iPad register bundle,” which includes everything you need to turn your tablet into a real point-of-sale terminal – cash drawer, receipt printer, everything. This all comes at a cost, though. NCR Silver costs $79 per month, and the credit card reader costs an additional $79. The machine that reads cards and scans barcodes costs $549. It’s for the small businesses that are a bit bigger than what Square can offer.

[via USA Today]

As you can see in the image, as posted on TechCrunch, there are some pretty distinct similarities. “The copying of Square’s image is clear and obvious. Indeed, it appears that mPowa’s infringement is intentional and deliberate, and that mPowa’s attempt at imitation may extend to other key Square intellectual property, including the Square Website and Square’s trademarks and trade dress,” the company said.

However, mPowa doesn’t agree. The company’s CEO Dan Wagner said, “We think this is a petty attempt to divert our focus from trying to capture a meaningful share of the mobile POS market. It won’t deter us from our focus, and everything contained in the legal missive is completely unfounded.” We’ll see what happens. The mobile payment landscape is certainly interesting these days.

[via TechCrunch]

That is, the day when a company would step forward and charge a 0% fee for processing credit card transactions. That’s LevelUp, from Boston company SCVNGR. It’s a QR code-based mobile payment app that previously charged users a 2% fee for all credit card purchases. That was already among the lowest in the business, but SCVNGR thinks it can change the way the entire business model works.

“We think we’ve actually got the model that obviates the need for Interchange to be how payments make money. We think that this is an economic inevitably,” company CEO Seth Priebatsch said in a VentureBeat interview. Square, by comparison, charges a 2.75% fee for every credit card swipe. So how does LevelUp make money? The idea is to monetize customer acquisition and customer loyalty campaigns, with LevelUp only making money when those campaigns pay off – but if they do, it can lead to much more than a measly 2.75%. Read more in the via link below.

[via VentureBeat]

QR codes have so far been used mainly for basic tasks like directing users to micro-sites. So if you go into Best Buy and scan the QR code next to a TV, you’ll go to a special landing page with more information about the product. Paydiant wants to bring that technology to mobile payments. In a VentureBeat interview, Paydiant founder Chris Gardner accused players like Square and Google Wallet of having “Visa envy.”

“We said, hey, regardless if that becomes a viable model, we believe there’s an opportunity for someone to offer mobile wallets and offers solutions to brands,” Gardner said. His company is also looking into NFC technology for when that might become a bit more accessible, but for now it likes the QR code idea. It has regional trials set up with five banks throughout the country and has secured nearly $20 million in funding.

[via VentureBeat]

Google Glass, Starbucks, & Telescopes: Moving right along in our list of hot tech stories from the day, we have this – TDK reveals wireless charging small enough for headsets or Google Glass. And if you need to get your coffee (news) fix, how about this one – Starbucks launches Android app in UK and Canada. Also, this is one for you space/science junkies out there – Advanced telescope can detect exoplanets.

Nexus 7, Twitter, & Mummies: And finally, as we look as the rest of the stories that hit it big on the site today, we’ll start with this – Nexus 7 gets fabulous Google ninja unboxing video. Here is something for you Apple-loving Twitter users – Tweetbot for Mac released for download. And finally, whenever possible we like to round up the wrap-up with something more quirky or unusual, like this – Science baffled by Frankenstein monster mummies.

The Android app, which will be available for phones running 2.2 and up, will let you link your Starbucks Card number. After that, you can pay for orders by letting employees scan the barcode that appears on the phone. If you don’t want to jump out of Maps to find a Starbucks store, you can do it straight from within the app.

Users in the United States have a nice new addition to the current app as well. Your Starbucks Card can now be topped up using PayPal, and the app has support for all major credit cards too. Starbucks says there are now over 14,000 locations worldwide that can accept mobile payments, and that number is getting bigger every day.

For Best Buy, the constant inundation of news stories about how customers in their stores behave is potentially more damaging to its reputation than the reality of how their customers behave. So to quash this perception of “showrooming,” the retailer is apparently considering offering streaming prices on LCD screens to show customers that it has nothing to hide. So if you walk by the newest 3D TV, you might see a little monitor next to it that shows real-time prices from Walmart, Amazon, etc.

Obviously there would be a huge risk with this since Best Buy is usually not the cheapest place to buy something. But if you saw right there, at that moment of impulse, that if you were to go all the way home and wait for Amazon to ship it to you that you’d only save $10, you might still go ahead and just buy it. It’s that nagging thought of “Hey, I bet Amazon has this for, like, $100 less” that is truly killing Best Buy. It’s a neat idea. We’ll see if it comes to pass.

[via Star Tribune]

Meanwhile, the mobile wallet service will also be thrown open to other issuing banks and partners, and both firms have broader European intentions that cover more of the carrier’s 93m mobile customers. The MasterCard product will be issued by ClickandBuy.

Unlike some systems, Deutsche Telekom and MasterCard will use a SIM-based approach for their mobile wallet. Functionality will include a text message receipt of each transaction, though we’re guessing that there’ll be some sort of phone app for checking balance and shopping history too, depending on platform. Coupons will definitely be supported, and the carrier will be installing NFC-enabled payment terminals in stores so as to boost the number of places the system is accepted.

Mobile payments continue to be the nut to crack, with various approaches to the marketplace. Google is reportedly working on its second-gen Wallet system, while Windows Phone 8 will include support for mobile payments over NFC. MasterCard is already working with other partners, most recently demonstrating the PayPass payment system on the Galaxy S II.

However, it could take Apple’s entry to the ecosystem to make a dent in it. The iPhone 5, expected to be launched later in 2012, is believed to include NFC for mobile payments.

Of course, the reality of competing against Square might prove problematic. So what are these enhanced benefits and features that mPowa offers? For starters, it not only allows customers to pay for purchases with a credit card, but it can also accept payments from customers who have a chip or PIN enabled payment method. In addition, its related app is available on Android and iPhone as well as Blackberry and Windows Phone.

The transaction fee is only 0.25% per purchase. “Our main focus are those businesses who already take cards but lack the mobile point of sale facilities to make transactions on the go, the Whirlpools or charities of the world. Now they can make home visits or collect money anywhere,” mPowa founder and CEO Dan Wagner said in an interview with TechCrunch.

[via TechCrunch]

The new system, called SAIL, will however not go after anyone and everyone who thinks it’s cool to accept credit card payments. SAIL is aimed exclusively at real businesses that perform a significant amount of transactions every month. That’s because it charges a distinctly lower swipe fee but also makes users pay a monthly fee, making it a better choice only for those who will recoup those 15 extra dollars every month.

VeriFone is significantly well established in the world of retail credit card terminals and has grown very comfortable setting up monopolistic authority in some segments, like in-taxi payments. But these new rivals have forced it to get back on its feets and learn to be competitive again. Square, PayPal, and many others have stepped into the fray, revolutionizing payments in a way that has never been seen before.

[via GigaOM]

The company that has pioneered the effort is called Sage. The Sage Mobile Payments platform has taken the age-old confectionary door-to-door convention to new heights. This year, for example, the average cookie sale transaction among the Girl Scouts of Central California South was nearly $80. In 2011, that number was closer to $20. And the organization thanks Sage and its ability to sucker more money out of customers who can no longer use the excuse of not having any cash on hands.

“Cookie sales for the troops in our council using Sage Mobile Payments increased by 27 percent and the per-girl-average in those troops increased from 154 boxes to 176 boxes, a 14 percent increase,” said a representative for the Girl Scouts of North East Ohio. So it’s a pretty successful endeavor. Would you buy more girl scout cookies if you local neighbor accepted credit card payments?

[via BSM Info]

“It’s clearly an effective way to increase researchers attention on Internet-based services and therefore find more potential issues,” wrote PayPal chief information security officer Michael Barrett in a blog post. PayPal, however, does not publicly announce minimum or maximum bounty payments. Gooel, though offers up to $20,000 for anyone who finds a highly critical bug, and Mozilla pays a generous $3,000 for every bug that it deems important.

It is surely no coincidence that the increased bug bounty payoff comes as PayPal has wildly expanded its product and service offerings. In just the first half of this year, PayPal has added the ability to pay for purchases in store, it launched a mobile credit card reader, and it added functionality for near field communication (NFC) contactless mobile money transferring.

[via GigaOM]

The Wallet Hub uses Microsoft’s new NFC support added to Windows Phone 8, pulling together secure payments, loyalty cards and coupons into a single location on the phone.

The Wallet will also feature a PIN, which can be used to protect any purchases made using the phone. That covers both NFC transactions and Marketplace purchases, and means that even if the Windows Phone itself isn’t secured with a lockscreen PIN, people picking it up won’t be able to spend the users’ money.

Chase’s app – which will drop later in 2012 – supports showing the current balance of things like debit cards, checking accounts and credit cards. It also lists Chase Quickpay requests.

AppCharge is just like Square – once you sign up, you get an attachment for your phone that acts as a portable credit card terminal. Simply swipe a card, get the purchaser’s signature, and your money will be deposited into your bank account. The only thing that seems to set AppCharge apart is that it boasts higher transaction limits. It does appear to be more enterprise-centric, as the company doesn’t even have a set rate for transaction fees. That varies depending on your individual plan with AppCharge.

“We wanted to create a simple and secure product that gave merchants all the features of a robust merchant account and terminal, with the freedom to process just about anywhere and at a fraction of the cost. By offering 24/7 technical support and higher transaction limits, we are meeting the needs of businesses who expect more from their processing partner,” the company said in a statement.

This software upgrade will have merchants applying discounts to loyal customers’ bills automatically, with the complete destruction of the paper punch-card in the works if Square gets its way. As Keith Rabois, Square’s chief operating officer says:

“Those punch cards that you get and stick on your refrigerator and leave behind? On your phone you have one for every merchant you visit.” – Rabois

This upgrade will be added to the iPad app as well as several other platforms immediately if not soon, and you’ll see the app upgrade in the iTunes App Store on your device today if not this week. This digital stamp card will not have all of the stores you work with offering discounts immediately, but will instead offer that ability to them in hopes that they’ll utilize it in the near future.

Have a peek at our Square timeline below to get up-to-date with the hardware and the software as it exists in the market today.

[via NYTime Bits]

To accept a debit or credit card through Coin will cost the merchant 2.55%, which is 20-basis points lower than Square. Of course, this is kind of like people who gripe about seeing a gas station with $0.02/gallon cheaper gas after they fill up – in practical terms, you aren’t going to see a change. But people like knowing they got the best deal possible even if it has no impact at all on their life.

Oh, and yes, the decision to name the company after an object that is very much non-Square was intentional. Just check out this snippet from Coin’s website – “So you can see, we actually thought a lot about how to build a better device rather than copy everyone else’s. Then we remembered something simple: The world is round, not square.” Coin also offers a linked debit card so you have immediate access to your funds. Let the mobile payment wars begin.

[via VentureBeat]