How is this any different than the Starbucks App which does practically the same thing and is a runaway success?
I do agree though that CVS is going the wrong way with this. I much prefer to use my Apple Pay or NFC payment's as a whole.
Their app can and should do all the stuff that it does except the payment. They can integrate their loyalty card, manage prescriptions etc. That's all great. But, when it comes time to actually give them money, this convoluted, tedious and time wasting bar code scanning is just ridiculous. Enable NFC, accept Apple Pay (and the others) and be done with it. I believe this is an attempt to minimize the fees they pay for accepting cards.
But you are already scanning the barcodes of the various items you check out. How is scanning one more barcode much of a hassle?
This is why I thank the gods I live in a country with a system where by my prescriptions are free for me and the cost of prescription drugs are regulated ~$11 per item regardless of the drug if you don't qualify for free prescriptions.
It's free for you, but everybody else is paying for your drugs. Don't thank the gods, thank the millions of idiots willing to pay for your scrips.
I also thank the idiots that pay for the military, legal, police, and fire protection I receive.
Because my family has to deal with CVS for an prescriptions, we have been sending our prescription to Canada since their negotiated cost they share with consumers is less then CVS and some time Rita Aid.
The US Government considers those to be illegal drugs. If you recall Google was nailed by the Feds for allowing Canadian drugstores to advertise to US consumers.
And when you pay with a credit card, you leave a trail of the crime. Don't laugh - my home state of Washington actually tracked an in-state purchaser of cigarettes from a tribal online supplier on the east coast via his credit card. The sent him a bill, and when he didn't pay, their seized his house and proceeded to get a wage garnishment.
I've been bothered by MCX ever since I first heard about it. To me, the name, Merchant Customer Exchange, was completely transparent about what they were really all about: merchants exchanging consumers (specifically, their personal data). That made me conclude that to the merchants, us consumers are just a commodity, much the way a pimp perceives his ho's. That's some bullsh!t and it was therefore delicious schadenfreude when MCX died.
Now, this CVS crap - bunch of wrong headed crap that just makes transactions a hassle - barcodes?! Puh-leeze, that was maybe "innovative" in the 1980's. I've been exclusively going to RiteAid ever since CVS blocked Apple Pay on their terminals. Maybe they turned AP back on? Who cares, I'm happy with RiteAid so far and CVS has permanently lost me as a customer.
Lastly, I read all of the comments above this post and I made sure to hit 'like' on every entry where fellow readers are voting with their dollars and expressing their displeasure and taking their business elsewhere. Fuck you CVS and its ilk.
I moved my pharm acct to local ( non chain) pharmacy from CVS.
They deliver to my door and know my name when I walk in.
Love the service and knowledge.
My insurance company also uses CVS/caremark but there aren't any stores within an hour of me so I can use whatever local pharmacy I want. Costco or Walgreen's (has taken ApplePay for a long time) is what I use although I also use caremark mail order for most of our maintenance drugs.
As for CVS, they took over a lot of the old Long's Drug Stores and turned them into ugly mini Walmart stores. It doesn't surprise me they're trying to roll their own and I can't wait for someone at BlackHat to show how vulnerable their system is. The crazy thing about all these me-to systems is they aren't needed. Get a good POS system with a good credit card system and you're ready to accept ApplePay and any other NFC system. It doesn't take any programming on the merchants part because all the programming is already done in the card reader. I'm seeing more small merchants accept Apple Pay, which excites me. When I visited California a couple months ago, almost every store I went to accepted ApplePay. I haven't seen anyone use one of the other one-off systems.
My insurance company also uses CVS/caremark but there aren't any stores within an hour of me so I can use whatever local pharmacy I want. Costco or Walgreen's (has taken ApplePay for a long time) is what I use although I also use caremark mail order for most of our maintenance drugs.
As for CVS, they took over a lot of the old Long's Drug Stores and turned them into ugly mini Walmart stores. It doesn't surprise me they're trying to roll their own and I can't wait for someone at BlackHat to show how vulnerable their system is. The crazy thing about all these me-to systems is they aren't needed. Get a good POS system with a good credit card system and you're ready to accept ApplePay and any other NFC system. It doesn't take any programming on the merchants part because all the programming is already done in the card reader. I'm seeing more small merchants accept Apple Pay, which excites me. When I visited California a couple months ago, almost every store I went to accepted ApplePay. I haven't seen anyone use one of the other one-off systems.
My insurance company also uses CVS/caremark but there aren't any stores within an hour of me so I can use whatever local pharmacy I want. Costco or Walgreen's (has taken ApplePay for a long time) is what I use although I also use caremark mail order for most of our maintenance drugs.
As for CVS, they took over a lot of the old Long's Drug Stores and turned them into ugly mini Walmart stores. It doesn't surprise me they're trying to roll their own and I can't wait for someone at BlackHat to show how vulnerable their system is. The crazy thing about all these me-to systems is they aren't needed. Get a good POS system with a good credit card system and you're ready to accept ApplePay and any other NFC system. It doesn't take any programming on the merchants part because all the programming is already done in the card reader. I'm seeing more small merchants accept Apple Pay, which excites me. When I visited California a couple months ago, almost every store I went to accepted ApplePay. I haven't seen anyone use one of the other one-off systems.
My insurance company also uses CVS/caremark but there aren't any stores within an hour of me so I can use whatever local pharmacy I want. Costco or Walgreen's (has taken ApplePay for a long time) is what I use although I also use caremark mail order for most of our maintenance drugs.
As for CVS, they took over a lot of the old Long's Drug Stores and turned them into ugly mini Walmart stores. It doesn't surprise me they're trying to roll their own and I can't wait for someone at BlackHat to show how vulnerable their system is. The crazy thing about all these me-to systems is they aren't needed. Get a good POS system with a good credit card system and you're ready to accept ApplePay and any other NFC system. It doesn't take any programming on the merchants part because all the programming is already done in the card reader. I'm seeing more small merchants accept Apple Pay, which excites me. When I visited California a couple months ago, almost every store I went to accepted ApplePay. I haven't seen anyone use one of the other one-off systems.
My insurance company also uses CVS/caremark but there aren't any stores within an hour of me so I can use whatever local pharmacy I want. Costco or Walgreen's (has taken ApplePay for a long time) is what I use although I also use caremark mail order for most of our maintenance drugs.
As for CVS, they took over a lot of the old Long's Drug Stores and turned them into ugly mini Walmart stores. It doesn't surprise me they're trying to roll their own and I can't wait for someone at BlackHat to show how vulnerable their system is. The crazy thing about all these me-to systems is they aren't needed. Get a good POS system with a good credit card system and you're ready to accept ApplePay and any other NFC system. It doesn't take any programming on the merchants part because all the programming is already done in the card reader. I'm seeing more small merchants accept Apple Pay, which excites me. When I visited California a couple months ago, almost every store I went to accepted ApplePay. I haven't seen anyone use one of the other one-off systems.
My insurance company also uses CVS/caremark but there aren't any stores within an hour of me so I can use whatever local pharmacy I want. Costco or Walgreen's (has taken ApplePay for a long time) is what I use although I also use caremark mail order for most of our maintenance drugs.
As for CVS, they took over a lot of the old Long's Drug Stores and turned them into ugly mini Walmart stores. It doesn't surprise me they're trying to roll their own and I can't wait for someone at BlackHat to show how vulnerable their system is. The crazy thing about all these me-to systems is they aren't needed. Get a good POS system with a good credit card system and you're ready to accept ApplePay and any other NFC system. It doesn't take any programming on the merchants part because all the programming is already done in the card reader. I'm seeing more small merchants accept Apple Pay, which excites me. When I visited California a couple months ago, almost every store I went to accepted ApplePay. I haven't seen anyone use one of the other one-off systems.
Made a lot of money as owned Longs stock. But when CVS would not loan me a few pills needed for a trip
I switched to local independent pharmacy. They were afraid I would die and they would be out 5 pills. Emmis.
This is why I thank the gods I live in a country with a system where by my prescriptions are free for me and the cost of prescription drugs are regulated ~$11 per item regardless of the drug if you don't qualify for free prescriptions.
So who is actually paying the real cost of your prescriptions? It has to be coming out of somebody's pocket somewhere; TANSTAAFL applies whether you like it or not, or whether or not you realize it.
Meanwhile, there's a good deal of padding going on with regards to our healthcare costs here, including prescription stuff. A lot of it being the government-mandated, end to end paperwork requirements from development through manufacture to delivery. People tend to forget that.
It's called universal health care paid through taxes. It's not perfect but it does mean people don't go bankrupt or worse die because they can't afford treatment though some here would scream socialism/communism buthe it does mean healthcare/insurance companies can't gouge people. Also the NHS buys in bulk and can negotiate a much lower cost for drugs.
Part of me understands CVS position on this. However it is very short sighted. Consumers want to use what works for them. They want CHOICE. CVS should allow Apple Pay and then come out with their own solution also. If their solution is better for consumers they will use it. Otherwise they will use the prove solution of Apple Pay.
Have any of you guys actually tried Apple Pay at CVS lately? It works. So you do have choice.
Which probably means that their barcode system is DOA, but hey.
How is this any different than the Starbucks App which does practically the same thing and is a runaway success?
I do agree though that CVS is going the wrong way with this. I much prefer to use my Apple Pay or NFC payment's as a whole.
Because CVS is forcing customers to input their credit card info while Starbucks has Pay as an option to replenish one's account making it so you never have to input your card number in their system.
No different than my Starbucks App. The positive thing is more information is available it is not just the payment here, it is also about prescription info etc. In the case of Starbucks it is about my rewards and Stars earned. Don't get me wrong I like Apple Pay and Car Play and all the good things Apple does. There are no PC's in my house , but you have to keep an open mind.
One major difference. Obviously you don't read the comments
Their app can and should do all the stuff that it does except the payment. They can integrate their loyalty card, manage prescriptions etc. That's all great. But, when it comes time to actually give them money, this convoluted, tedious and time wasting bar code scanning is just ridiculous. Enable NFC, accept Apple Pay (and the others) and be done with it. I believe this is an attempt to minimize the fees they pay for accepting cards.
But you are already scanning the barcodes of the various items you check out. How is scanning one more barcode much of a hassle?
You have a point if you're doing self-checkout, like at a Walmart or Home Depot or Lowe's. Otherwise, it's the cashier who's physically scanning the barcodes of your items. So the burden of scanning barcodes is on the cashier. The "burden" of paying is on you. I can argue that Apple Pay does cut down that "burden" with the following.
I carry my iPhone in my left pocket. I put my items on the counter for the clerk. While they're scanning/bagging the items, I pull out my phone with my left hand, as I move the phone toward the NFC reader I position my left thumb onto the fingerprint reader, when the phone gets within range of the NFC reader the phone screen automatically lights up with the default card displayed as it's reading my fingerprint, and 0.8 seconds later the payment goes through. I put my phone back into my left pocket. Wait for the cashier to finish their job. That's a fancy, detailed way of saying "I put the phone near the reader with my thumb already on the home button."
That's less of a burden (Sure, you can argue it's a small difference. You can also argue it's a big difference. I can argue $500 isn't much, and also argue it's a lot) than using a credit card. Retrieving my wallet, taking out the credit card, inserting it into the chip reader, waiting 10-15 seconds before it'll allow me to remove it, then returning my card to my wallet, and returning the wallet. It is technically more steps and more effort and more time.
Swiping the card cuts down on the "waiting for approval" for chip readers. That's where the benefits of security come in. Magnetic swipe readers don't have good security protections, but NFC and chip-readers do.
So if we're talking about convenience: Apple Pay > Magnetic swiping > Chip Card Readers
If we're talking about security: Apple Pay > Chip Card Readers > Magnetic swiping
What I've read is that Apple Pay prevents the merchants valuable tracking/marketing information because of Apple Pay's inherent "security" features; meaning Apple Pay doesn't transfer details of what you bought/how much/etc. that merchants frequently gather, bundle, and either use themselves or sell the bulk data to 3rd party marketing firms. So it's valuable to them. Hence all these efforts to stop Apple Pay, like CurrentC from MXC or whatever they were called. Also, some app solutions wanted direct connection to your checking account, rather than credit card, so in addition to keeping the marketing info they wouldn't have to pay credit card fees to the banks/credit companies.
It's basically a transparent display of a company's priorities: consumer experience vs company interests.
It doesn't have to be "either or". You could argue allowing all NFC payment solutions could bring in extra customers, and the ease and novelty psychologically makes them purchase more than normal and more frequently than normal, leaving profits at least the same as before or even higher, while increasing customer satisfaction. It's arguable.
How is this any different than the Starbucks App which does practically the same thing and is a runaway success?
I do agree though that CVS is going the wrong way with this. I much prefer to use my Apple Pay or NFC payment's as a whole.
One obvious difference that I hadn't seen mentioned is that the Starbucks app was around way before aPay. It's not like they saw aPay and decided to go their own way. It also means that not only have their customers had time to acclimate to it's usage, but they've figured out ways to add value (e.g. online ordering) to the app AND to still integrate aPay (you can use it to reload your card). To me that is the best of both worlds, it still utilizes aPay so SB never has my "real" CC on file and I benefit from the extra security (and convenience) and being able to reload my card with a simple fingerprint scan AND I can leverage their loyalty program and other features.
What will/should happen is that folks will figure out how to utilize aPay within their custom loyalty apps and therefore forgo the additional expense of additional POS hardware. The clearer technical path is to mimic SB for now, but expect that to change going forward (once the legacy of MCX finally goes away).
singularity said: it does mean people don’t go bankrupt…
Just the country that provides the services. Just the country.
Having a health care system such as the one in the UK doesn't equate to the country going bankrupt. Last time I looked the UK was not bankrupt. Unless of course you can show it actually is.
Yep, i agree with previous posts...Bozos! I applaud CVS for discontinuing the sale of cigarettes, but this seems stupid. Just like the CEO of Verizon not jumping on the iPhone when first approached back in 2007, dumba$$.
singularity said: Having a health care system such as the one in the UK doesn't equate to the country going bankrupt.
Not when someone else is footing the bill, no. Certainly you’re correct.
Last time I looked the UK was not bankrupt.
“It hasn’t happened yet, therefore it doesn’t look like it happens” isn’t much of an argument, but it’s at least better than what you’ve been (not been) providing.
Unless of course you can show it actually is.
I wouldn’t presume to be an authority on your system (other than knowing that socialism inevitably fails), so what are your thoughts on these points? Is there newer data to refute them?
singularity said: Having a health care system such as the one in the UK doesn't equate to the country going bankrupt.
Not when someone else is footing the bill, no. Certainly you’re correct. “It hasn’t happened yet, therefore it doesn’t look like it happens” isn’t much of an argument, but it’s at least better than what you’ve been (not been) providing. I wouldn’t presume to be an authority on your system (other than knowing that socialism inevitably fails), so what are your thoughts on these points? Is there newer data to refute them?
68 years and counting for this "socialist" healthcare system and it still hasnt failed. But due to constant political interference/improvements and constant changing the goalposts plus the abomination of ppp (public private partnership) and the way the NHS is "funded" amongst other things has led to the reported deficits.
Though there is one certainty any political party here that comes out and tries to introduce an American style system would be seeing their party doomed to extinction. We may bitch about the cost but the vast majority (except extreme free market nutjobs) of people want it kept and would prefer a royal commission to ensure a sensible funding system.
and here in the UK, Boots, the largest Pharmacy chain has accepted Apple Pay for ages. It is one of the few places that actually have the Apple Pay stickers at the tills. No fuss. No stupid Barcode App.
I felt like I was going back 10+ years when I shopped in the USA a few months ago. As for your banking system, not much has improved wince the 1980's when I lived in N.H. and it took up to 10 days for my salary cheque to clear from my employer in Boston. Is it still illegal to carry more than $10,000 in cash over state lines? It was back then.
In contrast, I made a payment (not via a credit card company) to a company in Italy a few days ago. I got an email from them less than two hours later confirming the payment and that my goods were on their way (Two Moto Guzzi Le-Mans pistons).
TL;DR I'm an international jetsetter who carries lots of cash while riding my motorcycle. I am awesome. America sucks.
Whoever is actually in charge at CVS is seriously insane. What chaos and mismanagement must be occurring at this company's board meetings (if they're actually holding any) that permit lunatics to continue making such hysterically inept decisions?
Comments
And when you pay with a credit card, you leave a trail of the crime. Don't laugh - my home state of Washington actually tracked an in-state purchaser of cigarettes from a tribal online supplier on the east coast via his credit card. The sent him a bill, and when he didn't pay, their seized his house and proceeded to get a wage garnishment.
Now, this CVS crap - bunch of wrong headed crap that just makes transactions a hassle - barcodes?! Puh-leeze, that was maybe "innovative" in the 1980's. I've been exclusively going to RiteAid ever since CVS blocked Apple Pay on their terminals. Maybe they turned AP back on? Who cares, I'm happy with RiteAid so far and CVS has permanently lost me as a customer.
Lastly, I read all of the comments above this post and I made sure to hit 'like' on every entry where fellow readers are voting with their dollars and expressing their displeasure and taking their business elsewhere. Fuck you CVS and its ilk.
Also the NHS buys in bulk and can negotiate a much lower cost for drugs.
Which probably means that their barcode system is DOA, but hey.
Just the country.
I carry my iPhone in my left pocket. I put my items on the counter for the clerk. While they're scanning/bagging the items, I pull out my phone with my left hand, as I move the phone toward the NFC reader I position my left thumb onto the fingerprint reader, when the phone gets within range of the NFC reader the phone screen automatically lights up with the default card displayed as it's reading my fingerprint, and 0.8 seconds later the payment goes through. I put my phone back into my left pocket. Wait for the cashier to finish their job. That's a fancy, detailed way of saying "I put the phone near the reader with my thumb already on the home button."
That's less of a burden (Sure, you can argue it's a small difference. You can also argue it's a big difference. I can argue $500 isn't much, and also argue it's a lot) than using a credit card. Retrieving my wallet, taking out the credit card, inserting it into the chip reader, waiting 10-15 seconds before it'll allow me to remove it, then returning my card to my wallet, and returning the wallet. It is technically more steps and more effort and more time.
Swiping the card cuts down on the "waiting for approval" for chip readers. That's where the benefits of security come in. Magnetic swipe readers don't have good security protections, but NFC and chip-readers do.
So if we're talking about convenience: Apple Pay > Magnetic swiping > Chip Card Readers
If we're talking about security: Apple Pay > Chip Card Readers > Magnetic swiping
What I've read is that Apple Pay prevents the merchants valuable tracking/marketing information because of Apple Pay's inherent "security" features; meaning Apple Pay doesn't transfer details of what you bought/how much/etc. that merchants frequently gather, bundle, and either use themselves or sell the bulk data to 3rd party marketing firms. So it's valuable to them. Hence all these efforts to stop Apple Pay, like CurrentC from MXC or whatever they were called. Also, some app solutions wanted direct connection to your checking account, rather than credit card, so in addition to keeping the marketing info they wouldn't have to pay credit card fees to the banks/credit companies.
It's basically a transparent display of a company's priorities: consumer experience vs company interests.
It doesn't have to be "either or". You could argue allowing all NFC payment solutions could bring in extra customers, and the ease and novelty psychologically makes them purchase more than normal and more frequently than normal, leaving profits at least the same as before or even higher, while increasing customer satisfaction. It's arguable.
What will/should happen is that folks will figure out how to utilize aPay within their custom loyalty apps and therefore forgo the additional expense of additional POS hardware. The clearer technical path is to mimic SB for now, but expect that to change going forward (once the legacy of MCX finally goes away).
“It hasn’t happened yet, therefore it doesn’t look like it happens” isn’t much of an argument, but it’s at least better than what you’ve been (not been) providing.
I wouldn’t presume to be an authority on your system (other than knowing that socialism inevitably fails), so what are your thoughts on these points? Is there newer data to refute them?
But due to constant political interference/improvements and constant changing the goalposts plus the abomination of ppp (public private partnership) and the way the NHS is "funded" amongst other things has led to the reported deficits.
Though there is one certainty any political party here that comes out and tries to introduce an American style system would be seeing their party doomed to extinction. We may bitch about the cost but the vast majority (except extreme free market nutjobs) of people want it kept and would prefer a royal commission to ensure a sensible funding system.
TL;DR I'm an international jetsetter who carries lots of cash while riding my motorcycle. I am awesome. America sucks.