Most users mistakenly think it’s simple and easy for merchants to support Apple Pay or NFC payments. Technology is simple. In the USA, almost all merchants contract with a payment vendor. Look at Paymentus (for big companies) or square (small biz) for how this works. The legal contract determines what’s enabled, what’s not, how much the merchant pays for each type of transaction, equipment leases, minimum fees if no customers use it, all the rules, terms and conditions, etc.
for those interested, fraud liability is a big deal. It’s why Apple spent so much time convincing payment networks that Apple Pay should be considered EMV chip present. Shifts liability between merchant/bank and reflected in the transaction fees, and security terms and conditions. That’s good, but also makes other contract rules apply. This all really ends up making a few lawyers really rich and the average phone user frustrated that Apple Pay don’t work here.
It is perfectly understandable that there is only moderate use of contactless pay systems in the USA. This is a country whose citizens still use cheques (checks) on daily basis even for basic purchases.
In Australia the banks are very concerned that Apple Pay has a very high usage by Australians to the point they are lobbying the Australian governments to curtail the use and growth of Apple Pay.
I was bemused when Apple decided to introduce Apple Pay into America as I thought America would be last country to roll out Apple Pay given its paper cheques and aversion to NFC in stores.
America is so backward compared to the rest of the world in this area ...
For those complaining that Apple Pay is hard to use with the iPhone due to mask usage, I say "you call yourself an Apple fan and don't have an Apple Watch?" Where I live contactless is ubiquitous and preferred, since its more secure, and there's no mask issue with the Apple Watch (and again, faster if you don't already have your iPhone in hand). If you live in a town with a subway system that supports Apple Pay, OMG what a difference and sooooo fast and easy.
The Apple Watch has scores of reasons to buy it that have nothing to do with Apple Pay, but as it turns out that's the second most used part of it for me (the first part is of course the clock). It's crazy the US is so behind on this (apart from the really big cities).
America is so backward compared to the rest of the world in this area ...
For those complaining that Apple Pay is hard to use with the iPhone due to mask usage, I say "you call yourself an Apple fan and don't have an Apple Watch?" Where I live contactless is ubiquitous and preferred, since its more secure, and there's no mask issue with the Apple Watch (and again, faster if you don't already have your iPhone in hand). If you live in a town with a subway system that supports Apple Pay, OMG what a difference and sooooo fast and easy.
The Apple Watch has scores of reasons to buy it that have nothing to do with Apple Pay, but as it turns out that's the second most used part of it for me (the first part is of course the clock). It's crazy the US is so behind on this (apart from the really big cities).
Lots of people have iPhones but don’t have Apple Watches and don’t particularly care to call themselves Apple fans.
I played with ApplePay for a bit. First I had to wait for my credit card to work with it. My Credit Union still has no plans so my debit card is out. But when I finally got a card that would load, I tried it a few times. The first place, where I go to for my tech gear, it worked fine. The next three places in a row were hard fails. I might as well have been waving a block of wood at the reader. So I then had to pull out my physical card and swipe it. That was a couple of years ago. When I updated my phone I didn’t even bother setting up ApplePay. TBH I haven’t even opened the Wallet App on this iPhone. No reason to go through that hassle, and embarrassment when tapping my chip card is almost as easy and WORKS EVERY TIME.
So it does not surprise me that in store usage is in the single digit range. I wonder if it’s a similar percentage of iPhone owners who have even set up AP. I would not be surprised.
Most merchants have gotten better in the past couple of years. Worth giving it another shot, especially if you have an Apple Watch. Most convenient of all.
I probably won’t bother as long as my debit card isn’t compatible Thats what I use most of the time. I can whip that out, tap, and be done in just a couple seconds. But even if it was, I really don’t see a need to switch.
Using a debit card is, perhaps, the biggest reason to use Apple Pay: Debit cards expose your bank accounts to fraud and Apple Pay will help shield them. That security is why, on the advice of my credit card company, I switched to Apple Pay.
No reason to go through that hassle, and embarrassment
If it doesn't work, it's on the merchant, and I give them what for for not implementing it. Make them feel embarrassed. I certainly am not.
On the rare occasion that I come upon a merchant who does not accept it, I've found that they already look kind of sheepish & apologetic. But that's the young cashier embarrassed because his boss is so far behind the times.
SO odd given the one time token of ApplePay is so much more secure than a card. I’ve received two of those “we've bern hacked, you’re getting a new card” notices. Two too many.
For me mask use is trivial: I hit my passcode and done. Trade security for en extra ten seconds? No thanks.
I find Apple Pay to be not only more secure but much faster than a chip card -- especially using it from my watch.
In fact, I find myself getting impatient waiting for the person in front me holding up the line as they fumble around with cards
I played with ApplePay for a bit. First I had to wait for my credit card to work with it. My Credit Union still has no plans so my debit card is out. But when I finally got a card that would load, I tried it a few times. The first place, where I go to for my tech gear, it worked fine. The next three places in a row were hard fails. I might as well have been waving a block of wood at the reader. So I then had to pull out my physical card and swipe it. That was a couple of years ago. When I updated my phone I didn’t even bother setting up ApplePay. TBH I haven’t even opened the Wallet App on this iPhone. No reason to go through that hassle, and embarrassment when tapping my chip card is almost as easy and WORKS EVERY TIME.
So it does not surprise me that in store usage is in the single digit range. I wonder if it’s a similar percentage of iPhone owners who have even set up AP. I would not be surprised.
Most merchants have gotten better in the past couple of years. Worth giving it another shot, especially if you have an Apple Watch. Most convenient of all.
I probably won’t bother as long as my debit card isn’t compatible Thats what I use most of the time. I can whip that out, tap, and be done in just a couple seconds. But even if it was, I really don’t see a need to switch.
Using a debit card is, perhaps, the biggest reason to use Apple Pay: Debit cards expose your bank accounts to fraud and Apple Pay will help shield them. That security is why, on the advice of my credit card company, I switched to Apple Pay.
Agreed. If my CU supported ApplePay for their Debit Card, I'd be moving aggressively to start using it. But I've asked them several times and it isn't even "We are investigating the option". They flat out say they have no plans to make their systems compatible with AP. They aren't even studying it. I'd look at changing institutions but other than this one thing, we are very happy with their service.
Most users mistakenly think it’s simple and easy for merchants to support Apple Pay or NFC payments. Technology is simple. In the USA, almost all merchants contract with a payment vendor. Look at Paymentus (for big companies) or square (small biz) for how this works. The legal contract determines what’s enabled, what’s not, how much the merchant pays for each type of transaction, equipment leases, minimum fees if no customers use it, all the rules, terms and conditions, etc.
for those interested, fraud liability is a big deal. It’s why Apple spent so much time convincing payment networks that Apple Pay should be considered EMV chip present. Shifts liability between merchant/bank and reflected in the transaction fees, and security terms and conditions. That’s good, but also makes other contract rules apply. This all really ends up making a few lawyers really rich and the average phone user frustrated that Apple Pay don’t work here.
Actually, my experience had the smaller and newer merchants accepting Apple Pay and other contactless systems before the larger retailers, precisely because they used 3rd-party vendors who provided the capability more quickly and easily. The mid- and large-sized retailers have to worry about upgrading point-of-sale systems on a much larger scale.
SO odd given the one time token of ApplePay is so much more secure than a card. I’ve received two of those “we've bern hacked, you’re getting a new card” notices. Two too many.
For me mask use is trivial: I hit my passcode and done. Trade security for en extra ten seconds? No thanks.
I find Apple Pay to be not only more secure but much faster than a chip card -- especially using it from my watch.
In fact, I find myself getting impatient waiting for the person in front me holding up the line as they fumble around with cards
How about that awkward time while you just stand there waiting for the terminal to say it's time to finally remove your card. Ugh!
And I do get a little annoyed that some stores still require me to enter a PIN for debit purchases.
Comments
for those interested, fraud liability is a big deal. It’s why Apple spent so much time convincing payment networks that Apple Pay should be considered EMV chip present. Shifts liability between merchant/bank and reflected in the transaction fees, and security terms and conditions. That’s good, but also makes other contract rules apply. This all really ends up making a few lawyers really rich and the average phone user frustrated that Apple Pay don’t work here.
I was bemused when Apple decided to introduce Apple Pay into America as I thought America would be last country to roll out Apple Pay given its paper cheques and aversion to NFC in stores.
For those complaining that Apple Pay is hard to use with the iPhone due to mask usage, I say "you call yourself an Apple fan and don't have an Apple Watch?" Where I live contactless is ubiquitous and preferred, since its more secure, and there's no mask issue with the Apple Watch (and again, faster if you don't already have your iPhone in hand). If you live in a town with a subway system that supports Apple Pay, OMG what a difference and sooooo fast and easy.
The Apple Watch has scores of reasons to buy it that have nothing to do with Apple Pay, but as it turns out that's the second most used part of it for me (the first part is of course the clock). It's crazy the US is so behind on this (apart from the really big cities).
Using a debit card is, perhaps, the biggest reason to use Apple Pay: Debit cards expose your bank accounts to fraud and Apple Pay will help shield them. That security is why, on the advice of my credit card company, I switched to Apple Pay.
On the rare occasion that I come upon a merchant who does not accept it, I've found that they already look kind of sheepish & apologetic. But that's the young cashier embarrassed because his boss is so far behind the times.