What good is the I-phone

[Reisen]

Yes, great point. I had a very similar reaction when I was reading another article on the CurrentC process earlier.
Can you imagine waiting in line behind someone trying to get their phone to read the QR code and having to re-try and re-position numerous times? (and after waiting for them to unlock their phone, find the right app, and wait for it to launch?) Forget it!

I might as well go back to waiting behind people to count out 68 cents from their pocket.

You just described my experience at Starbucks (Starbucks has a mobile app that pops a barcode). I can't count how many times they've had to manually type the number in when the scanner won't read the code.

It's a cumbersome process at best.

[brevity]

Good luck to retailers trying to launch their own system. I don't give that a snowball's chance. You're right that no one wants to have an app for every retailer. Starbucks, I'm looking at you.

I'm far less informed on commercial transactions and information security than the rest of you, but wouldn't it be analogous to a Starbucks debit card? People can use their regular credit card there, but the advantage of a Starbucks card is free drinks and other rewards. I don't know if it's otherwise cost-prohibitive to launch your own system, but enough consumers theoretically would use it.

For more background, John Gruber has a nice post http://daringfireball.net/2014/10/nfc_apple_pay

The name Gruber rings a bell, yeah. Cuz I know the man, I know the family.

[Matches]

Not for nothing but the in-app Panera purchase system is fantastic. You can order anything off their menu, customize it as you like, and pay with Apple Pay. They will have it ready for you in 10 minutes or less. You just walk into the store and pick up your order off the "rapid pickup" shelf - it even has your name on it - and head right back out (or to a table if you prefer). Hugely convenient for getting food on the go - no waiting in line, no debit card needed.

[Lord Ash]

This morning I received an email from Panera Bread that announced their acceptance of payments via the I-phone. My thought was, "Yeah, so what? I don't have an I-phone." How much does one of those phones cost anyhow? And what about the monthly operating costs of that phone? Golly, my Visa card costs me nothing, and I've been able to swipe it to make a payment for years. Do I get a receipt from the I-phone? I don't know. That would make it easy to check out my Visa bill when it comes. Does the I-phone replace the credit card, paying directly to the vendor? Either way, what have I gained? OK, there's a little bit of cyber security protection, but is it worth all that money that fattens Apple's wallet?

Jar, I read this entire post in the voice of Clint Eastwood in "Gran Torino."

Now get off my lawn.

[snowdenscold]

Wow, the more I read, the more obvious it gets that MCX was caught off guard by how quickly and successfully Apple was able to get their mobile pay system up and going. They dismissed NFC basically out of hand, and were set on bringing a "quick to market" QR code-based app - only it still won't be available until next year! In the meantime, they've basically been leap-frogged technologically (and/or at least from a consumer experience standpoint) and it has their CEO sounding fairly silly trying to counter the negative PR they've been getting from the sudden Rite-Aid/CVS shut off of Apple Pay.

They better re-think their strategy and start executing quickly or it might be game over.

Dekkers Davidson, CEO of MCX:

"We have respect for Apple and Apple Pay," he said. "There is no harm in competition. It should happen. Consumers need to have choice, and we will put choice in consumer's hands.

Ummm, that sounds pretty hollow given what happened last weekend, plus the reports that MCX members will have to pay fines for using alternative systems to CurrentC.

"I think there’s been a mistake made here, and that is focusing on the technology instead of what business or consumer problem you’re trying to solve,”

Says the group that thinks scaninng QR codes inside of specific apps (vs. the app-less swipe) is solving a consumer experience problem. I like what the Forbes article earlier said: "Until Apple Pay, mobile payments seemed dead on arrival; solutions looking for a shopper problem to solve."

[mpj96]

My 2013 BMW has an remote app that came with the technology package... the app still works and has the option of actually starting the vehicle with the phone if the phone is within 100 feet.

My 2014 Jeep has this functionality in the US. However, I don't think you have to be as close as 100 ft.

[Reisen]

Starwood rolling out smartphone keys at all Aloft, Element, and W hotels. This has been in the works for awhile, and starts at a small group tomorrow. I stay at the Element in Manhattan pretty frequently (maybe 6x a year), so should get to try it this year.

http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/04/tech...html?hpt=hp_t3