Apple, China UnionPay have 'preliminary' agreement on Apple Pay, report says
Apple has allegedly reached a tentative agreement with China UnionPay, which could see Apple Pay come to China via UnionPay's 5 million or more NFC-equipped point-of-sale terminals.
Exact terms have yet to be sealed because the companies are waiting for input from card-issuing banks, sources told Bloomberg on Wednesday. Indeed no deals have been signed with any local banks, and some of them are reportedly worried about Apple Pay's fees, as well as its relatively low number of users.
In the U.S., only about 1 percent of retail transactions are handled through the service, according to research cited by Bloomberg. Apple is meanwhile believed to charge a 0.15 percent fee per transaction -- while U.S. merchants generally pay 2 percent in total fees, Chinese merchants are accustomed to paying as little as 0.38 percent.
Assuming everything goes smoothly however, UnionPay could help launch Apple Pay as soon as 2016, providing competition for current mobile payment players Alibaba and Tencent. Alibaba controls 83 percent of the Chinese market.
The claims come just days after reports said that Apple Pay could hit China in February 2016. The Wall Street Journal said that Apple has reached deals with four state-run banks, possibly contradicting Bloomberg's acccount.
The Chinese market is essential for Apple as one of its strongest sectors of growth, poised to eventually eclipse the U.S. The iPhone moreover enjoys strong popularity in the country, which could make it a prime target for Apple Pay so long as enough banks and merchants support it.
Exact terms have yet to be sealed because the companies are waiting for input from card-issuing banks, sources told Bloomberg on Wednesday. Indeed no deals have been signed with any local banks, and some of them are reportedly worried about Apple Pay's fees, as well as its relatively low number of users.
In the U.S., only about 1 percent of retail transactions are handled through the service, according to research cited by Bloomberg. Apple is meanwhile believed to charge a 0.15 percent fee per transaction -- while U.S. merchants generally pay 2 percent in total fees, Chinese merchants are accustomed to paying as little as 0.38 percent.
Assuming everything goes smoothly however, UnionPay could help launch Apple Pay as soon as 2016, providing competition for current mobile payment players Alibaba and Tencent. Alibaba controls 83 percent of the Chinese market.
The claims come just days after reports said that Apple Pay could hit China in February 2016. The Wall Street Journal said that Apple has reached deals with four state-run banks, possibly contradicting Bloomberg's acccount.
The Chinese market is essential for Apple as one of its strongest sectors of growth, poised to eventually eclipse the U.S. The iPhone moreover enjoys strong popularity in the country, which could make it a prime target for Apple Pay so long as enough banks and merchants support it.
Comments
Finally found a retailer near me (in the US) with Apple Pay and used it for the first time yesterday! Honestly, it was not as clear-cut as I thought it would be, plus it took longer than if I had simply chosen to pay with cash (my usual method). On top of this, the retailer still required my signature, undermining one of the key benefits of the service. I'll probably just continue to use cash instead.
How much was the transaction for? I've never been asked to sign on an Apple Pay charge in America or Europe (hundreds of transactions now) using American cards first on my 6 Plus and now with the incredible convenience of the Apple Watch.
Less than $100.
Not sure it is a time saver either, but I like the security of the merchant not having my card number.
When I use cash neither the retailer nor a credit card company is allowed any personal information. Once when I was at a Best Buy and used cash, they wanted my zip code and I loudly said "I'm paying with cash, you don't need my zip code!"...problem solved.
As some have already stated on here Apple Pay doesn't require a signature for anything but a few merchants can't seem to understand that no signature is required. They have their terminals set to sign because it was set up incorrectly. This happened at Walgreens of all places. I screamed at Chicago their head offices asking if they're handling my percriptions this poorly and 5 days later the signature required was gone.
Honestly I just think who's ever setting these terminals up - and it's certainly NOT Apple, they need to be better informed.
Plus check out great deals. Discover has a great "cash back" 10% cash back program when using Apple Pay with their discover card instead of paying with discover directly.
Last night I went to buy two pairs of sketchers for $93 each (around $198 total with a bluray movie tossed in) and upon selecting Disvover I was informed by Amazon that I had $143 Apple Pay cash back credit would I like to use it? Hell yeah. I got both pair of shoes and homeland season 4 for a total of $65!! Thanks discover. That was a nice surprise.
Go open your wallet and see which cards offer this. Barclays gives 10% discount when I buy Apple product using Apple Pay and Barclay. That really came in handy buying two iPhones ($2,100) and the new iPad pro with accessories ($1,300) if I'd used the card only no discount but using Apple Pay with their card a 10% instant savings
I'd definitely want to be able to use Apple Pay for EVERY online transaction to get my credit card info out of more databases.
Finally found a retailer near me (in the US) with Apple Pay and used it for the first time yesterday! Honestly, it was not as clear-cut as I thought it would be, plus it took longer than if I had simply chosen to pay with cash (my usual method). On top of this, the retailer still required my signature, undermining one of the key benefits of the service. I'll probably just continue to use cash instead.
1) If you're using an NFC terminal that does not have an ApplePay logo on it, then the process is no different from that of using a regular credit card (e.g., zip code input or not; sign or not). The use of ApplePay in that situation really only offers the benefit of substantial added security. That matters to a lot of people, including me.
So, if you only primarily use cash instead of credit cards, then the use of the iPhone or the Watch to pay is not for you.
2) If you're using an official 'ApplePay' terminal (and you'd typically see that logo on the POS terminal), then none of these should be issues. But official ApplePay terminals are few. That is frustrating, but many retailers don't want to spend the money on a new POS terminal.
To me it sounds like you're somewhat paranoid about divulging any personal information of any kind (e.g., if giving them your zip code matters so much), at least much more than anyone else I know.* Looks like cash is indeed the way to go for you (as an aside, I am not sure why you even have any credit cards). AFAIK, there aren't too many people like you.**
* Not meant as a value judgment in the least!
** Again, no value judgment intended!
There was, in fact, an Apple Pay logo on the terminal.
I think in time, requiring a pin our signature will go away when using Apple Pay as the banks get more used to the system and security.
It took a long time to get card swinging terminals all over the place. I still remember cards being put into a mechanical device with carbon paper and swiping that. The raised numbers ing the card leaving a impression and signing that.
It's not going to happen overnight. Change doesn't happen overnight.