So now I have to download each bank's or credit card’s app and use it if I want to pay with that card? Wonderful, how consumer friendly, what amazing choices I now have. Thank you so much regulators!
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Apple Offers to Open NFC Payment Technology to Third-Party Developers in Europe
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Now force Apple to allow other voice assistants to launch from the “Siri button.” And make them take Apple services adverts out of the Settings app. And let us launch whatever camera app we want from the lock screen.
So now everyone in the EU can expect a bonanza of incredible bargains from other banks and credit cards that were just itching to give them super low fees for transactions but were prevented from doing so by Apple?
Yeah, I can't wait banks to shove their own cr@ppy apps down my throat, and then stop supporting Apple Pay (that works flawlessly on all my devices), to avoid its minuscule fees. So much win for the customer!
Not.
And what is the benefit of using Google Pay or Samsung Pay on my iPhone? Today I'm using the same cards in Apple Pay on my iPhone and in Google Pay on my Android based phone. Tokens need to generated and cards activated within each ecosystem on each device anyway. So what is the benefit?
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I don't see why that would be difficult to implement, perhaps it may require a prompt and extra click from the user though. The Apple Wallet is a pretty convenient tool, any serious developer would do well in conforming to Apple's rules to have a place in it.
Why doesn't the dumb EU go after Spotify for having a monopoly? Oh that's right, the EU only goes after American companies.
Curious why you think this is a good thing? Are their bank apps that you use that provide you a better experience than Apple Pay? Do you trust your bank more with your data? Would you rather have had CurrentC than ApplePay (had this been the rule when CurrentC was attempting to compete, it would have been more likely that they would have done this and it would be even less likely they would have folded).
You like the EU basically only regulating companies not in their area? The Digital Markets act directly applies to almost no companies based in the EU, but mostly to U.S. based companies. Do you think there is a possibility that the heavy regulation in the EU is why they have no national champions that are remotely competitive with Apple, Facebook, Google, etc.?
The EU has finally become a dictator again over the people that left Europe over 400 years ago.
The European Union is currently in the process of forcing music streaming platforms (Spotify included) to pay recording artists more.
But sure. Let’s pretend EU regulators never regulate EU companies.
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SamsungPay offers wider compatibility because the have (or had) hardware that could emulate a mag stripe. It would not be able to do this on iPhones. On the other hand wide adoption of ApplePay by Apple’s users is what drove Tap to pay acceptance in the U.S., and it is still the dominant mobile payments solution in this country. In 2020, ApplePay accounted for 92% of mobile pay users with Samsung pay at 5%, and Google Wallet at 3%. These numbers have stayed consistent (I cannot find a publicly accessible link to quote, but there are several paid ones that are more recent).
What you also neglect to mention is that if Apple had been forced to open up NFC, large banks would likely have chosen not to support it, and it would have been less widely adopted, requiring multiple apps to use tap to pay and ensuring no privacy focused option would exist.
This rule may or may not provide access to anyone not doing payments. Until its rules are finalized we will not know. However, I am perfectly happy to have this limited for privacy and security reasons.
You again miss what the real dominant players would have been, and that is the big banks. No one would have ever forced them to offer their cards in Apple Pay (for example look at any number of cobranded cards issued by CapitalOne, Comenity andSynchrony and Synchrony, among others).
Why? Because only Apple users tend to use this tech at all? Might that be because they trust Apple with their data and do not trust others? In most of the world, Apple has substantially under 50% of the market. Why is Apple’s 35% of the market needed for such a service to succeed in France?
Apple has a 92% share of the mobile payment market in the U.S. despite having under 60% of the phone market in the U.S., something that was true even when their market share was smaller earlier in the roll out. Apple did not stifle competition, it created the market. Even today, a very small percentage of Android users in the U.S. use Google pay, compared to a very large percentage of Apple users.
You seem to want it both ways: NFC being closed on Apple devices results in a fragmented landscape, but opening NFC will yield competition but not fragmentation. Got it.
These companies do have the option of not operating within the EU.
And the US is entitled to regulate any EU companies operating within the US.
I don’t either as a user.
when I buy something then doesn’t matter if pay cash, debit card, credit card, wallet, etc.
i can see the benefits for developers and other companies that can avoid the Apple Pay transaction charges etc however unless going to make it cheaper in terms of the price I am paying however pretty sure that companies cannot charge different price depending upon payment method.
To save another 100 pages of political fallout:
Developers have had this option on Android for an age. Everybody still uses Google Pay. Even Samsung Pay isn’t very widely used. On iOS people will continue to use Apple Pay and it doesn’t make your device less secure.
Developers have had this option on Android for an age. Everybody still uses Google Pay. Even Samsung Pay isn’t very widely used. On iOS people will continue to use Apple Pay and it doesn’t make your device less secure.
Not gonna happen. Too much money at stake.
Like when the US demands they turn over user information?
Their choice. If the balance of their interests lies in continuing to operate within the EU, then they have to accept whatever the EU requires.
If EU companies don't turn over whatever the US government demands, then the US government can take whatever US law allows them to take. And in exactly the same way, they can choose not to operate in the US.
Obviously there are potential costs with whatever they decide.
Since 3rd party payment apps have been blocked from accessing the NFC chip up until now, was Apple responsible for any problems with those apps then?
Well, does that matter? In my travels to Germany outside the big cities maybe, maybe half the places accept a credit card, leave alone NFC capabilities…
Blocking other payment apps from using the NFC chip would be as bad as if Apple had blocked apps from using FaceID/TouchID to log into the app, forcing users to enter their user name and password each time.
The NFC chip should be seen as a basic part of the phone and allowing other payment apps to access it would make mobile payments and mobile banking more convenient and secure.
Don't want to use any other mobile payment/banking app besides what Apple has to offer? Great. Don't. No one is forcing you to. But options should be made available to those who do.
I'm guessing the reason Apple has blocked access to the NFC chip is because they're worried their revenue from ApplePay transactions would take a hit.
Apple Pay revenue is heading toward multi-billion dollars - 9to5Mac
Apple Pay revenue hasn't gotten much attention so far. The most valuable role Apple Pay plays for the Cupertino company is further lock-in to the ecosystem
9to5mac.com
Again less choice for consumers. A specific bank might want to use their own app instead of Apple Pay. Now it’s less choice for the consumer.Blocking other payment apps from using the NFC chip would be as bad as if Apple had blocked apps from using FaceID/TouchID to log into the app, forcing users to enter their user name and password each time.
The NFC chip should be seen as a basic part of the phone and allowing other payment apps to access it would make mobile payments and mobile banking more convenient and secure.
Don't want to use any other mobile payment/banking app besides what Apple has to offer? Great. Don't. No one is forcing you to. But options should be made available to those who do.
I'm guessing the reason Apple has blocked access to the NFC chip is because they're worried their revenue from ApplePay transactions would take a hit.
Apple Pay revenue is heading toward multi-billion dollars - 9to5Mac
Apple Pay revenue hasn't gotten much attention so far. The most valuable role Apple Pay plays for the Cupertino company is further lock-in to the ecosystem
Getting Apple Pay acceptance in the uS was a huge win for apple and for consumers. These “open ‘em up” regulations are a step back, in my opinion..
Or the bank can just integrate the mobile payment function with their existing banking app that you likely already have.
If someone has a Chase credit card, for example, chances are that person already has the Chase banking app installed. I mean how else is that person going to pay their credit card bill, redeem their credit card points, activate quarterly 5% bonus category offers, and other special offers? Doing all that through a web browser would be such a PITA.
Good news for those who want to pay for their “medical” marijuana or “dating” services when traveling in the Netherlands.
There should be a simple option inthe setting to select a payment provider. Most of us will stick to Apple. If you have this options for different apps. I would ban Messages immediately.
Being a monopoly isn't illegal. Using your monopoly status to push around rivals and force the market in specific directions, however, is.
So what did Apple do wrong by protecting the consumer?