The recently announced mobile payment system from Google, Android Pay, is now available in the US. The company has partnered with brands like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Subway, and Macy’s, which will accept Android Pay at more than one million locations across the US. The service will be compatible with devices having NFC support and running at least Android KitKat 4.4.
The official blog post from Google states that the platform supports debit and credit cards from payment networks — American Express, MasterCard, Visa, and Discover. The company says the tokenisation method used for security, will ensure that customer data is not leaked or stolen. The system sends a virtual account number to the merchant instead of their real credit or debit card number. In addition, users will also receive a confirmation, as soon as the transaction is made, mentioning the location where it has taken place. Existing Google Wallet users will be receiving an update while new users will have to install it from the Play Store. It will also come pre-installed on new NFC-enabled smartphones in contract with AT&T, Verizon Wireless, and T-Mobile.
Google’s Android Pay will be competing with Apple Pay and Samsung Pay. According to Apple, the company’s mobile payment platform saw more than 1 million credit card registrations within 72 hours of its launch. As for Samsung Pay, the company has launched it in South Korea and will be bringing it to the US on September 28. Injong Rhee, Samsung Executive VP has said that an average of 25,000 customers are using it everyday in Korea since its launch.
