Tag: mobile payments app

Industry experts in the retail sphere are predicting that the technology will start heating up next year.

With the close of 2015, there have been a number of predictions as to what will be taking off in 2016 and which trends will continue on their way, and many experts have been saying that they see mobile payments as something that will make an important splash before another year comes to a close.

The prediction is that mobile wallets will take off not only in retail stores but also other locations like restaurants.

Although there have been experts who have been predicting that mobile payments would be taking off for several years, the forecasts for 2016 are larger than ever before. With the introduction of chip credit cards, many people are saying that Samsung Pay, Android Pay and Apple Pay are going to be seen as more convenient and will start to become a normal form of transaction at retail counters and in restaurants. This will be an important shift as consumers have been quite resistant to stepping away from their plastic cards. According to CEB analyst, Andy Schmidt, 2016 could be the year in which that begins to change in a meaningful way.

The migration to chip cards could be just the opportunity that mobile payments need to make themselves known.

Banks, credit card issuers and retailers have all been changing their plastic card technology to include chips and many technology experts believe this slowdown at the checkout counter will have consumers looking to other types of transaction to speed up the process. While chip cards are considered to be safer than the magnetic stripes, it takes several seconds longer for each transaction to be completed. With the combination of the change in habits and the slower process, it could be what consumers need to look to the various smartphone-based options to speed things up again.

For this reason, it is expected that many companies are all going to do their part to stand out in the mobile wallet marketplace. There are already a large number of options, including major players such as Samsung, Apple, Google and even a recent entry by Walmart. Target has also announced that it’s working on its own option, while keeping its position as an important member of the anticipated MCX mobile payments app, as well. The belief seems to be that retailers – individually and as parts of consortiums – will be offering and receiving smartphone based transactions in the largest numbers yet throughout 2016.

This initiative is a joint effort between UnionPay and its partners including more than 20 commercial banks.

UnionPay has now announced that it has launched QuickPass, a new mobile payments system, in Beijing, in a joint venture between it and more than twenty commercial banks.

The hope is that it will help to bring credibility, safety and convenience to the smartphone payments market.

The QuickPass mobile payments solution has now been rolled out and is available throughout the city wherever UnionPay cards are accepted. The system is also supposed to come with the same level of financial security and convenience that the firm’s technology has been known to provide. Using this mobile phone based payment transaction service is possible through a range of different technologies. These include Token, TSM, HCE and NFC technology. This latest version of the QuickPass system underscores convenience and security on every level. This is important as these are among the primary barriers to adoption that have been identified by consumers.

This mobile payments service is supported by any smartphone that has Android 4.4.2 or higher and NFC technology.

To use it, consumers are asked to download the QuickPass mobile app and to create an alternative to the traditional UnionPay bankcard, called the QuickPass card. Once this has been established, the smartphone can be used to make purchases at any POS terminal that features the QuickPass logo or when making purchases on the internet by way of the UnionPay Online Payment (UPOP). This system does not require any SMS verification.

QuickPass has been designed to stand out in an industry that is becoming increasingly swamped with different smartphone payment options – particularly when taking into consideration the adoption rate among consumers, which remains somewhat limited. In this case, the hope is to show that there are enough levels of security in place for consumers to feel comfortable enough to give it a try. Many people are resistant to using mobile wallets due to concerns over privacy and the safety of their financial data.

This mobile payments service is also supposed to be very convenient as it uses rapid contactless payment technology that doesn’t require internet access or opening an app. The device must simply be on and the display must be held close to the reader. From there, the payment is completed