Tag Archives: ApplePay

Apple Launches Express Transit Payments For Commuters

Technology giant Apple is trying to get the most functionality out of the iPhone before the next chapter of personal and portable computing is written. Subscription-based services, digital content, and mobile payments are some of the verticals that Apple has been exploring for the purpose of squeezing more profits from the iOS ecosystem, and this includes enabling commuters to pay for bus or metro fares with their iPhone or Apple Watch devices.

ApplePay Mobile Transit PaymentsAccording to a news report by the London Evening Standard, Apple Pay has officially gone underground with its new Express Transit feature. Although the ability to use Apple Pay for London tube fares is not exactly new, this method used to require biometric authentication in order to complete the transaction. What this meant for London commuters was getting stuck behind fellow tube riders trying to figure out the Apple Pay FaceID or TouchID systems; we are talking about wait times of up to 30 seconds during rush hour. With Express Transit, Apple is going the more traditional and faster route of contact-less payments supported by Android Pay.

To enable Express Transit, which is available on iPhone models starting from the SE all the way to the 11 Pro, users should tap the Settings icon and visit their Wallet and Apple Pay section where they will find the new Express Transit feature. Setting this up is as easy as selecting the desired payment card; if you have an Apple Card, it will become the default payment method for fares in the Transport for London system. Although Apple has only mentioned the London underground in its Express Transit announcement, any of the yellow card and device readers installed at railway stations all across the United Kingdom will work.

It should be noted that Express Transit works with the Apple Watch, and this is probably the most convenient way to handle mobile payments because of the wearable factor. Needless to say, Express Transit devices must have the latest version of iOS or WatchOS to work properly. This new Apple Pay feature is not only a time-saver but is also more in line with the direction the mobile payments segment is taking. Express Transit was previously launched in the Metropolitan Transit Authority of New York City, but Google Pay is found in even more public transportation systems around the world.

ApplePay Faces Challenges in Europe

Various technology giants have been looking at the emerging mobile payments sector with great interest, particularly if they have already claimed some market share with regard to mobile devices, apps, and services. The big three in this regard are Apple, Google, and Samsung, and it could be said that Apple is in the best position to remain a leader, but this does not mean that it will be an easy undertaking.

Ready for Success

Gen Z Prefers Mobile Payments AppApplePay seems to have all the ingredients to carve a nice slice of the mobile payments pie: the iPhone continues to be one of the most popular mobile devices in the world, and virtually all of its models in use today have Near Field Communications (NFC) technology, not to mention the recent introduction of the Apple Card and the heavy promotion of its various digital payments options. Although the North American market is one of the most lucrative for Apple’s ambitions with regard to smartphone payments, adoption is always quicker in Asia and Europe, and it is in the latter market where the company seems to have run into a snag.

According to a report published by CNBC, European Union regulators who oversee business competition and antitrust issues have been receiving complaints related to ApplePay, enough for Margrethe Vestager, director of the EU Competition Commission, to announce that her office will be taking a closer look into the way Apple is entering the mobile payments market in the bloc.

Cause for Concern

One of the issues that EU regulators are likely to consider is the way Apple creates mobile ecosystems that rely on exclusivity for their growth. The iPhone and the iPad are locked into a single operating system, and it so happens that the iOS Wallet app does not allow users to integrate payment options that are not controlled by Apple. To make matters even more complicated for Apple once EU regulators start looking into ApplePay, the NFC chip of iPhones is actually disabled during some point-of-sale transactions, thus leaving users with the option of using the payment service preferred by Apple.

Recent statements by executives at Apple Park are not making things easier on the company with regard to anti-competitive behavior. After the Apple Card was rolled out with the underwriting of investment banking giant Goldman Sachs, Apple made it clear that skyrocketing growth was on the horizon, and that this method of payment could soon overtake the market share held by PayPal.

Even though the EU is already looking into claims made by music streaming service Spotify against Apple, this is hardly the only technology giant being investigated for potential antitrust activity. Facebook and Google are also being looked into by EU regulators with regard to their offerings in the bloc, particularly the former with its intentions of providing a digital currency system that will enable payment transactions and money transfer services to users of Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp.