WITH APPLE’S PRESS event just over a week away, the rumours surrounding what will be announced have gathered pace, some having more credence than others.
One that has been floating around for a number of months is Apple entering the mobile payments market. That rumour has gathered pace with Bloomberg, Re/Code and The Information reporting that deals have been struck with the likes of American Express, Visa and Mastercard.
According to these reports, the new iPhone will include near-field communication (NFC), which will facilitate easier mobile payments.
Alongside Touch ID, Apple’s fingerprint scanner which debuted on the iPhone 5s, it would allow users to pay for items just by using the touch of their finger.
The format would work similarly to Samsung’s Galaxy S5 which allows users to pay for goods and services via Paypal by using the fingerprint scanner to activate it.
Customers will simply present their phones at the checkout of partner retailers to pay for a product.
Currently, Apple has roughly 800 million iTunes and App Store accounts globally, which all include payment information.
If it enters the mobile payment sector, it will already have most of the groundwork done, although it will still have to convince the retail sector to adopt mobile payments.
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