MCX partner Best Buy to accept Apple Pay at stores later this year
During Apple's quarterly conference call for the second quarter of 2015, CEO Tim Cook announced big box electronics store Best Buy is now accepting Apple Pay through its app and will roll out in-store support later this year.
Netting Best Buy is a coup for Apple Pay as the company is a major contributor to the Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX) consortium, a group of retailers that actively repelled Apple's NFC payments solution at its stores. MCX plans to market its own mobile payments system in CurrentC, though the solution is thought to be more cumbersome and less secure than Apple Pay.
Notably, MCX partners CVS and Rite Aid switched off Apple Pay compatibility at previously compatible NFC point of sale terminals shortly after the service launched in October. The companies later said the move was in line with MCX policy.
Other MCX partners include Walmart, CVS, The Gap and other popular chains.
Speaking on the issue, MCX CEO Dekkers Davidson said in November that it had partner members' best interests in mind by blocking Apple Pay in favor of CurrentC.
"There are consequences, so if you decide to not keep the agreement that you made with the other merchants we're not going to put a lot of energy in helping get those merchants launched in the near term," Davidson said.
Best Buy is expected to roll out in-app Apple Pay support today, with in-store NFC compatibility to come later this year.
Netting Best Buy is a coup for Apple Pay as the company is a major contributor to the Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX) consortium, a group of retailers that actively repelled Apple's NFC payments solution at its stores. MCX plans to market its own mobile payments system in CurrentC, though the solution is thought to be more cumbersome and less secure than Apple Pay.
Notably, MCX partners CVS and Rite Aid switched off Apple Pay compatibility at previously compatible NFC point of sale terminals shortly after the service launched in October. The companies later said the move was in line with MCX policy.
Other MCX partners include Walmart, CVS, The Gap and other popular chains.
Speaking on the issue, MCX CEO Dekkers Davidson said in November that it had partner members' best interests in mind by blocking Apple Pay in favor of CurrentC.
"There are consequences, so if you decide to not keep the agreement that you made with the other merchants we're not going to put a lot of energy in helping get those merchants launched in the near term," Davidson said.
Best Buy is expected to roll out in-app Apple Pay support today, with in-store NFC compatibility to come later this year.
Comments
Predictable. CVS up next. Then Target.
They should've already jumped on the Apple Pay bandwagon. Why wait for people to patronize the competition?
CurrectC hasn't even fully launched yet.
I thought Best Buy would let it flounder for at least a year before they begrudgingly accepted Apple Pay.
I'd like to see Rite Aid fall. That's the one that bugs me most...
In any case, too late for BB. I had stopped shopping their years ago.
Didn't these MCX members turn off NFC on their terminals to block Apple Pay at their stores? If so, it seems they will be reversing this later this year (at least at Best Buy). They're accepting it now within their app, as does Target (they were a launch partner). I wonder if Target will follow as well? Perhaps it's just a matter of meeting the new credit card requirements that are to go into effect later this year and Apple Pay just comes along with it?
Wip-de-diddley-shit!! Who shops at BB anyway. Over priced and rife with annoying sales people. Not worth the pucker factor!
I don't recall ever having been dissolved by a BB salesperson. I've got a BB 10 minutes from my home--the nearest apple store is a good 30 minute drive--and it's a convenient alternative. I've bought cameras, apple branded accessories, phone accessories, sound equipment, etc. Your experience may vary.
I don't recall ever having been dissolved by a BB salesperson. I've got a BB 10 minutes from my home--the nearest apple store is a good 30 minute drive--and it's a convenient alternative. I've bought cameras, apple branded accessories, phone accessories, sound equipment, etc. Your experience may vary.
At least BB price-matches Amazon for in-stock items... that's the only benefit I see, if you need instant gratification.
I'd expect nearly all MCX members to cave in to ApplePay EXCEPT Walmart.
They should've already jumped on the Apple Pay bandwagon. Why wait for people to patronize the competition?
These companies are doing Current C at the instigation of Walmart, which hates credit card companies. The concept here is that instead of recognising a credit card, you will have your money taken right out of your bank account, thereby eliminating the credit card fees they now pay, which will then be available to add to their profits.
We can see how customer friendly this is, and why it's thought that it won't succeed.
By the way, the Best Buy app available through the iOS App Store is now configured for Apple Pay.
While the companies behind MCX really really hate swipe fees from Visa, MasterCard and Amex, Best Buy is seeing the writing on the wall for another problem that is a lot bigger for them: fraud. Best Buy stores are one of the biggest targets in the United States for buying merchandise with stolen credit cards. Anything that will cut down the potential of fraud in their stores is something they need to pursue...this is a big issue with their senior leadership (CFO, CEO, CIO, Board of Directors). Nobody wants the whole Target thing happen to them...and they know that criminals are trying to penetrate their systems every day. Targets senior C-level leadership all lost their jobs over the whole fraud mess. It's not hard to see Best Buy's motivations here.
Apple Pay accepts debit cards, which also avoid almost all fees. The merchants should just do something to encourage use of debit cards. In fact, the good security of Apple Pay helps with that.