With that in place, and the Square app installed, anybody can take a payment from a credit card. Square charges a 3.25-percent transaction fee in Japan, and is promising next-day deposits for “participating banks” and deposits within a week for other banks.

Meanwhile, Square will soon offer Square Wallet functionality in Japan, which will allow for direct payments between accounts, rather than requiring a credit card or cash. Square will also offer businesses the option of using a traditional cash drawer and receipt printer, though the app can send an email receipt by default.

Mobile payments are a growing business, and Japan has been ahead of the curve for some time with cashless options. Cellphones in the country have long been able to use mobile wallet systems, with subscribers able to charge travel, goods, and services to their monthly bill.

Square does not currently offer a Chip & PIN option – where credit or debit cards have an embedded microchip, similar in appearance to a phone SIM card, and the customer must punch in their PIN code to authorize the payment – which is in use in Japan, with the old-fashioned “swipe and sign” process used instead. The company is also working on a system for small payments between friends and family, with Square Cash going into closed beta recently.

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

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.”

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]

Square Wallet offers a one-stop shop inside your smartphone. Users can browse the Starbucks menu, check out store hours and their transaction history, and pay for their beverage via their mobile device. The system is not integrated with the My Starbucks Rewards program, but users can still earn stars via the Starbucks app.

Starbucks’ Chief Digital Officer offered this statement. “We look forward to continuing to create amazing connections with our customers – both in our stores and outside of our stores and offering our customers choices in how they want to pay … Starbucks believes in the values and vision of Square, and just three months after announcing our partnership with Square, we are thrilled to make the convenience of paying with the Square Wallet app available to our customers starting today.”

In order to use Square Wallet, you’ll need to download the app from the App Store or Google Play, depending on the device. Once installed, you’ll need to link the app to your credit/debit card, which will be charged when you pay for your items with the app. After its set up, you can simply tap “Pay Here” and scan the QR code for your order.

[via Square Up]

Square charges a 2.75% fee per card swipe, and brings in over $8 billion in annualized payments. The accompanying app, Square Register, is also free, making the system accessible to anyone who wants to convert to a mobile-based payment system. According to the press release, Canada is Square’s first foray outside of the US.

Said the VP of International for Square Alyssa Cutright, “We are focused on making commerce easy for everyone. Square builds free tools for local businesses of all sizes and types to thrive. We’re thrilled to introduce Canadian businesses and their customers to the most seamless and enjoyable way to do business.”

Payments issued through Square’s Mobile Card Reader and accompanying app are available within 1 to 2 business days. There are no setup fees or long-term contracts according to the company’s website. For those who bring in substantial business, there’s an optional $275 flat monthly rate rather than the 2.75% per transaction fee.

Square has now announced that it has officially ended its taxi pilot program. Square is also terminated its memorandum of understanding with New York City because it wants the ability to pursue different hardware and software combinations. The taxi payment program lasted seven months and was ended before the originally planned date of termination.

Square pointed the finger at pending taxi regulations in New York and elsewhere that would make it “commercially unreasonable” to pursue new hardware and software combinations while supporting the current pilot program. New York City is currently working on specifications and rules for the next taxi passenger enhancement project, which is the city’s effort to improve payments and the entertainment experience in city taxis.

The Square pilot program was originally supposed to operate in 30 taxis, and the pilot program was expected to run through February 15, 2013. The Square iPads were only placed in 15 vehicles and those 15 taxis logged 28,000 trips and approximately 100,000 miles. Square is offering to pay taxi drivers and medallion owners who participated in the test for the cost of uninstalling the Square system and installing another system from a different provider. Square is going to pay $378 to each medallion owner and taxicab driver to cover the difference in processing fees between the service and others as well.

[via gigaom]

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.

It was a pretty big day for NASA’s Curiosity rover, as it lifted its head for the first time and sent back new images of the surface of Mars. It appears that the Galaxy Note II – which is expected to be announced at the end of this month, remember – will come complete with a flexible display that makes it more resilient than typical smartphone displays. Speaking of the Galaxy Note, T-Mobile finally received the phablet today (along with the myTouch and myTouch Q), so if you’re a T-Mobile user, you might want to check that out.

Starbucks made a multi-million dollar investment in Square today, and we tell you all you need to know about using Square to pay for your coffee. Tickets for Microsoft Build 2012 went on sale today, but don’t expect to get any now, as they sold out just one hour later. Between the two of them, Android and iOS now make up 85% of the smartphone market, with Android taking 68.1% market share for itself. Apple did a couple of things to boost security today, temporarily freezing over-the-phone password resets and announcing that it will soon bulk up identity verification measures for iCloud.

Today OUYA announced that it is in talks with Namco Bandai as its Kickstarter winds down, it was revealed that Google voice search will soon land on the iPhone, and we caught wind of a rumor that claims the new iPhone will be 7.6mm thick. RIM’s stock enjoyed a little jump after one analyst claimed that Samsung was considering buying the company, and Valve revealed today that Steam will soon begin offering non-game software, complete with support for Steam Cloud. Finally, Warner is thinking about holding limited showings of The Hobbit at 48 frames per second, which has us excited since we have a tendency to go nuts whenever The Hobbit is mentioned.

That wraps up the news, but be sure to check out our interview with Kate Beckinsale of Total Recall fame, and also spend some time with our review of the HP ENVY 4 Ultrabook. Enjoy the rest of your evening, everyone!

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.

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]

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]

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]

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]

Sarah Friar was formerly the senior vice president at Salesforce, and will now be in charge of the financial operations of Square. The company has blossomed from a small startup to one of the universal standards for frictionless credit card acceptance. It’s even popular among individual users who want to split the bill at dinner or need to collect on a loan that they made to a friend. It’s that easy.

“Square was founded on a commitment to help people start and grow their business. I’m thrilled to join a company driving meaningful economic growth while revolutionizing the payment experience for consumers,” Friar said in a statement. Of course, as Square grows, so do its competitors, so it needs to keep as up-to-date on the mobile payment market as possible. So far, it’s doing pretty well.

[via VentureBeat]

VeriFone will offer two different payment options, depending on how frequently retailers expect to use SAIL. Those expecting just a few transactions can choose a flat 2.7-percent fee for swiped transactions; however, those who make more frequent use of SALE can reduce that transaction rate to 1.95-percent with a $9.95 monthly subscription.

As with rival services, SAIL apps will have a straightforward dashboard to show details of all transactions and bank deposits, but VeriFone has also thrown in an inventory management system. There’s also support for barcode scanning, either for item processing or customer offers, and the company plans to open up an API to third-party coupon and loyalty card services to allow them to hook into purchases too.

SAIL is available to download from the App Store today, with the Android version due in the Play Market later in May; retailers can sign up to the service directly from their phone, and begin taking payments immediately. They’ll also get the card scanner free. The developer and channel partner program, meanwhile, will begin operating this coming summer.

Square has been leading the mobile payment market for a while, but Verifone has a large customer base and reputable brand to leverage going forward. The features of the SAIL will be extremely similar to Square, but with a few differences. Transactions will have the same 2.7% fee, but Verifone will offer a lower 1.95% rate to those willing to pay $9.95 a month.

The iPhone dongle is a good starting point for small businesses, but as they expand Verifone will offer additional services as they scale, presumably meaning more professional and established point-of-sale devices. The Verifone SAIL app will also feature barcode scanning to give businesses more flexibility, and an online portal will be offered to keep track of payments and inventory.

Finally, Verifone will open up the service to third-party developers, so they could build payment processing right into their apps. As Business Insider points out, Verifone doesn’t care where payments come from, just as long as it’s processing them.

Of course, with that explosion comes an increasing amount of competition. Square’s biggest competitor is now PayPal. With PayPal’s new mobile credit card reader that can deposit any in-person transaction directly into a user’s PayPal account, the differentiation that Square offered has been harshly limited. And PayPal isn’t the only one. A slew of new mobile payment startups have launched in the last few months.

Square does still offer benefits above and beyond PayPal. For example, it recently confirmed that any credit card swipe performed before 5:00 PM on a business day will be deposited into the user’s bank account on the next business day. PayPal and other services can take 2-3 days or even longer. Square also landed a potentially huge deal in New York City, where it is currently running a pilot test to become the preferred provider of credit card payments in New York taxi cabs.

[via Bloomberg]

This move brings up a couple serious questions. One is whether or not Square might be looking to expand to Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, which is the backbone of Google Wallet. Square created a market and became the poster child of that market, but it’s now under growing competition from players like PayPal, which just launched its own free credit card reader for mobile devices.

The other question is what the future is for Google Wallet. Despite continuous assurances that it is working on building new payment and hardware partners, it seems unlikely Google Wallet will ever come to T-Mobile, AT&T, or Verizon which have jointly developed a rival platform. Right now, only people on the other major carrier even have access to Google Wallet, and that’s only if they have a Nexus S phone and a Citi credit card. In other words, it doesn’t look like there’s much of a future there.

[via GigaOM]

So users who want to support small businesses can now have a much better sense of where to go. Plus, when they enter the restaurant or shop, as long as they happ the Shop With Square app opened, their purchase is billed directly through the app – no need to exchange cash or credit cards. And it’s also available on Android. In other words, Square’s approach to mobile payments now is that it should be a completely software-driven approach. Actually swiping a card is so last decade.

This is the latest in what has become a very interesting chapter in mobile payment technology. Just in the past few months, PayPal has launched its own physical mobile credit card reader, Square has gotten the go-ahead to provide in-taxi mobile payments, and Google Wallet competitor Isis has begun rolling out scattered trials. It’s certainly an exciting time for this nascent market, and that means every player needs to step up the game. That means it’s a win-win for consumers.

[via Wired]

Namely, Alyssa Cutright, formerly PayPal’s VP of products for North America, will become Square’s global VP. The news comes right after PayPal launched its PayPal here platform, allowing any small business or even an individual person to accept credit card payments in person, with virtually no overhead. It’s the latest in what has been a whirlwind of mobile product innovations for PayPal in just the last couple months.

As for concerns about whether or not Cutright will be taking trade secrets to her new employer, “Although Alyssa held a product role with PayPal, she was not involved in the creation or launch of PayPal Here,” according to a PayPal spokesperson quoted by VentureBeat. Square is a one-trick pony right now, and what it needs to do is spread its wings. The mobile payment space now encompasses contactless smartphone payments, app-integrated retail and restaurant point-of-sale systems, and alternative payment account log-ins at the store register. Just offering one platform isn’t enough anymore.

[via VentureBeat]

Currently, cab drivers face the problem of high charge fees whenever a rider pays for their trip with a credit card, but Square wants to drastically reduce those fees. The company has been given the green light from the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission to put the custom iPads in 30 taxis. If it’s successful, rollout will be expanded in a big way. There are thousands of licensed cabs in NYC.

Right now, every yellow can in New York City has a TV for passengers to watch, but it’s a loop of the same several minutes of content over and over again. And many riders don’t even realize the TV is touchscreen, though this functionality is not being used to its fullest extent at all. Under the newly approved pilot program, which went through a meeting with the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission last month, riders can use the iPad to browse Internet content during their trip, and then simply swipe their card through the Square reader when it’s time to get out.

[via VentureBeat]

Of course, Square gets a cut on all charges, above and beyond the normal processing fee that’s paid to the credit card issuer. But it’s not that big of a cut. Square has gained a huge following among small businesses, and now it wants cab drivers to partake in the same benefits. Under the newly approved pilot program, which went through a meeting with the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission last month, riders can use the iPad to browse Internet content during their trip, and then simply swipe their card through the Square reader at the top of the device when it’s time to get out.

Right now, every yellow can in New York City has a TV for passengers to watch, but it’s a loop of the same several minutes of content over and over again. And many riders don’t even realize the TV is touchscreen, though this functionality is not being used to its fullest extent at all. A formal meeting between Square and the TLC has been scheduled for March 1. If you want iPads in your taxis, keep your fingers crossed.

[via VentureBeat]

Square, of course, has become one of the most popular companies for small businesses because of its smartphone software that allows individuals to accept physical credit card payments. And it doesn’t cost the user anything; they just have to pay a credit card fee. Right now, Dorsey is trying to convince the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission to make Square the primary method of credit card payments in cabs. And with iPads embedded into cabs, riders will be able to do things like check into Foursquare, get the latest reviews for wherever they’re heading, and of course check their current location on a map.

In a New York Times quote, Taxi & Limousine Commission chairman David Yassky seemed enthusiastic about the idea. Right now, every yellow can in New York City has a TV for passengers to watch, but it’s a loop of the same several minutes of content over and over again. And many riders don’t even realize the TV is touchscreen, though this functionality is not being used to its fullest extent at all. A formal meeting between Square and the TLC has been scheduled for March 1. If you want iPads in your taxis, keep your fingers crossed.

[via Mashable]

What exactly comes with a T-Mobile business plan? The carrier offers service rates as low as $60 per month for two lines, as well as special bundles of apps that are designed for business customers (e.g., DropBox, Evernote, and LinkedIn). The carrier wants to be defined as the best option for those customers. For Square, it means finally having a brick-and-mortar retail presence.

Square has been a cataclysmic help for small business owners who are out hitting the pavement and may be able to pick up sales that would have been lost if they were only able to accept cash. Said one Nikki Halgren, a small business owner who was quoted in the T-Mobile/Square press release, the carrier “not only keeps me connected on-the-go, but [makes] it easy for me to get paid fast with my T-Mobile smartphone and Square. T-Mobile has made it simple and, as a result, I’ve nearly doubled my business over last year.”

It’s nice to see two bitter political rivals come together on this issue. Each thinks that having iPhones equipped with the Square dongle, allowing instant credit and debit card payments to be accepted through a proprietary app, is a great way to earn money on the trail. “We’re going to be testing it in Florida tomorrow night to see how it works and then hope to roll it out to the rest of the country,” Romney campaign spokesperson Zac Moffatt told the New York Times.

On the Obama side, there’s actually work underway on a special Obama-themed Square app, which would allow anyone to go out and collect credit card donations on behalf of the president. In other words, campaign donations are going viral, and we all know if there’s one rule in politics, it’s that more money for the candidates is never a bad thing. Right?

[via NY Times]

“Just as small businesses are growing with Square, we’re growing with them: Over 1 million merchants now accept credit cards,” said the company in a tweet. And in response, Co-founder Jack Dorsey tweeted, “To put that in perspective: there are only 8 million merchants who accept credit cards in the US.”

Since debuting in 2009, Square has seen tremendous growth, most recently reporting a signup rate of 30,000 to 50,000 new merchants each month. It has shipped 800,000 card readers to merchants and processes $2 billion in payments a year.

Square’s latest offering is a hands-free payment feature using its Card Case app for iOS 5. As more small businesses accept Square, more users may also adopt the Card Case app. However, Square will face tough competition from NFC-based mobile payment systems such as Isis and Google Wallet, which has an additional component of delivering local deals.

[via VentureBeat]

The storeowner is able to see the users face on their side of the app and then when the charges are made the money is automatically pulled from the debit card or credit card associated with the user’s app. Square is the company that offers the small credit card reader already for processing payments on the go and has a lot of customers.

It has a large user base that might potentially be interested in the new app. This sounds like an interesting offering, I wonder how many stores and consumers will use the app. Would you use something like this? It seems like an easy way to pay and once you have a setup with the store you won’t have to do anything to pay for goods.

[via Gigaom]

Use is subscription-free, with each transaction charged at 2.7-percent plus a standard $0.20 fee. In contrast, Square doesn’t charge a set fee, but does take 2.75-percent of each transaction. Currently you need two separate accounts to use both the USB and mobile readers, though Kudos is working on integrating them so both systems can be associated with a single merchant account; it’s also one-device-per-account, though again addressing that is supposedly a work in progress.

Payments are “normally” deposited in your account the following business day, the company says. NetSecure is offering both the USB and mobile versions of the reader kit for $99.99 apiece, but OfficeDepot will sell you the mobile setup for $79.99 as part of a limited time promotion.

Square is now processing more than $2 billion in payments each year. It also has 800,000 merchants signed up. The numbers make Square count for 10% of the Visa and MasterCard world. The new changes are significant for some users. Square has now dropped the limit on transactions processed weekly before the funds are held. The limit was $1,000 per week before.

After that $1,000 was reached, anything above that in a week was held for as long as a month. Users can now process as much as they can. The per transaction fee of 15 cents was dropped already this year and the removal of the limits makes Square look even better to some users. The goal according to Square is to make it where people don’t need merchant accounts.

[via TechCrunch]

Once NFC reaches the point where consumers are interested and it’s readily available in smartphones and other products, retailers will start to become interested in NFC. Google is rolling out its NFC Google wallet system and will eventually offer NFC stickers that allow consumers that have smartphones and their devices that lack internal NFC to make payments. The ecosystem is growing with a big name behind it.

Rabois thinks that despite the growing ecosystem, most consumers are still not interested in NFC tech. I think that before many people are interested in NFC tech we need to see the retailer side use of NFC grow. If I could walk up to the cashier at Walmart and the cashier knew what was in my basket thanks to NFC tags on the stuff I am buying and could have the total when I walk up leaving only bagging it would be great. When I can tap my phone on the reader, pay, and be ready to go faster than I can today I am all for NFC tech. Make me wait less in that long line and I am all for NFC. What do you think, is NFC tech going to take off and does it offer value to you?

[via Gigaom]

Here is the security risk: the apps were found storing certain portions of user information in unencrypted form on the mobile device. What that means is that certain information was being stored in plain text on the phone. That doesn’t mean hackers will be instantly running off with your credit card number, it means that some sensitive information is vulnerable. In order to exploit this vulnerability an attacker would need to physically get his hands on the device, or gain access to the information via malicious software like spyware or malware. News about malware in some mobile devices is not very reassuring.

The iPhone version of Square’s mobile payment app was found to leave the most recent digital signature vulnerable as well as the transaction history. In their defense, Katie Baynes, spokeswoman for Square said that some information is necessary to store on the phone in order to track transactions such as customer’s last name and last four numbers of the credit card. Square stated that they follow standard PCI Security Standards Council practices. They did not comment on the digital signature.

The Android apps for LinkedIn and Netflix were discovered to leave the user name and password vulnerable. This opens up a slightly new risk, because many people use the same user name and password for multiple sites. That login information could allow hackers into other sensitive areas. Both LinkedIn and Netflix said they were aware of the vulnerability and working to get it patched.

What is the root cause? ViaForensics believes it is because developers do not make security their top priority. Developers tend to focus on delivering quality apps in an overcrowded marketplace. What do you think? Is mobile device security a thing of the future, or are we safe leaving software security in the past?

[via Wall Street Journal]

You might also remember that back in March the major competitor to Square, VeriFone noted that Square needed to recall all of its readers because they lacked encryption at the read point. VeriFone claimed that the lack of encryption at the point that the card was scanned left the user’s credit card details open to a hacker. Square fired back and claimed that its readers were hunky-dory.

While Square was touting the investment from Visa, Square COO Keith Rabois wrote a blog post that basically validated everything VeriFone accused the Square reader of. The crux of the post was that Square would be meeting Visa’s industry standards, and those standards mean they have to encrypt all the credit card data, including the data at the point the information is read. Square will be releasing a new reader of the iPhone this summer that encrypts the data as soon as it is read, VeriFone was accurate after all.

[via TechCrunch]

Both white and black versions of the reader are available, each plugging into your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad’s headphone socket and working alongside the Square app to accept mobile payments. That $9.95 also gets you $10 of credit, so in fact Square is paying you $0.05 for the privilege of signing up; alternatively you can download the app and request a free reader dongle through the mail.

There’s a 2.75-percent transaction fee payable each time you accept money using Square, and the system takes US-issued Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover cards. Payments are deposited into your bank account daily.