Apple Pay Coming to Germany, Also Set to Launch at CVS and 7-11 Later This Year

[chriscl]

My Commerzbank Girocard Debit Card (it uses the MasterCard network) is apparently not capable of contactless payments (it doesn't have the logo on it either).

My Commerzbank Credit Card (also a MasterCard) does do Contactless, and that is to be honest the only card I would want to use with Apple Pay. Some larger stores here in Germany do accept contactless for amounts under €30 (OBI, the DIY chain, for one, and Saturn is another).

So, come on Commerzbank, get on the bus.

 

[Rigby]

The problem arises not in the form of cards but at the terminal. Many shop owners have no clue, not to mention staff. "EC" is all they know and all it means to them is "not a credit card", a binary question. In the end they might accept Maestro cards or not - and they find out by trying what works / shrugging their shoulders. As a customer with a non-Girocard debit card you’re non-existant.
Eradicating the term "EC" puts an end to the binary world view. Needs to happen.

Or you could just get a Girocard that works everywhere. It is possible to maintain a German bank account and the card even if you are not a German citizen or even resident (e.g. I moved to the US years ago and still have my account and a working Girocard). If you live in Germany I'd say it would be worth it for you.

But, back to topic, I wonder if Apple Pay will be limited to the Mastercard/Visa networks or if the German banks will open the Girocard network too ...

 

[TAKeanice]

Last I checked, the ec-card (Girokarte/Maestro) charges 0.3% of the transaction amount, and there is no miminum fee. So paying for your Broetchen with an ec-card is not a problem for the bakery.

yep, plus a base rent for the device and the service. And VISA delays payments for up to 7 days, and charges much more than maestro, and so on...

 

[Rigby]

yep, plus a base rent for the device and the service. And VISA delays payments for up to 7 days, and charges much more than maestro, and so on...

The cost of handling cash is likely higher than even credit card transaction fees. Debit transactions are probably one of the cheapest payment methods from the retailer's point of view.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180130005244/en/New-Research-IHL-Group-Shows-Retailers’-Cash-handling

 

[Böhme417]

Visa has been running a ton contactless Visa Card ads on TV lately, perhaps this will drive even more store to contactless terminals. Wal-Mart Pay has become much faster, but it’s still at least three or four steps to bring it up. I would much prefer Apple Pay. Newer Sheetz stores also take Apple Pay at the pump.
I bet Target folds and ultimately takes Apple Pay I’m stores...I doubt Wal-Mart ever will. Would love if Publix would take it!

Agree with Publix! One near me has had capable terminals for quite a while, but just the other day I noticed they now have decals with the contactless symbol on the lower left part of the terminal. It didn’t appear to be working, though.

 

[dontwalkhand]

The cost of handling cash is likely higher than even credit card transaction fees. Debit transactions are probably one of the cheapest payment methods from the retailer's point of view.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180130005244/en/New-Research-IHL-Group-Shows-Retailers’-Cash-handling

Exactly why many stores steer people to using debit cards (not credit cards)

 

[charlituna]

Apple Pay used to work at CVS when it was first launched. Then, CVS wanted to push their own payment system with all those other retailers (forgot its name).

you mean the walmart designed thing that crashed and burned before it ever launched

 

[Makosuke]

Loyalty cards are opt-in. Credit/debit card let them track without opt-in.

This. CVS and its ilk rely on loyalty cards to track the hell out of your purchasing habits, but they'll certainly use your credit card to do so if you don't use a loyalty card (which I at least don't unless there's an actual sale one what I'm buying that requires it), and of course use some huge data clearinghouse to aggregate purchases from other credit card transactions, loyalty card or no.

There are means to track Apple Pay transactions as well, but it's significantly harder.

Some places where I live (in the US) have started offering discounts for paying in cash. The thing everybody seems to forget is that these payment processors skim money off every transaction, and that's terrible for small businesses. I pay in cash whenever possible because I want that money to go to my deli and not some big corporation.

The way I figure it, the merchant pays about 2-3% fees, give or take, and I get 1-2% of that back in rewards (depending on store), so the other 1% (which in the end is factored into the price of goods) is split between the occasional extended warranty benefit and what I'm willing to pay for the convenience of not having to carry cash around. Even if stores offered a cash discount that directly mapped to CC fees, I'd probably still use a credit card a lot of the time just to make life easier.

Heck, if I only have a couple of items there are times I'm finished paying with ApplePay before the person who was ahead of me has even finished bagging their groceries.

Particularly with big corporate retailers, I can either give them that 2-3%, or keep 1-2% of it myself and give the other 1% to some other big corporation. There's no way I don't come out ahead using a credit card that way.

I do tend to use cash at small local stores, but actually based on my (admittedly limited) experience with retail, unless the owner is also running the register there's a nonzero chance that a small store comes out ahead with credit cards because the till isn't getting skimmed.

 

[ignatius345]

I do tend to use cash at small local stores, but actually based on my (admittedly limited) experience with retail, unless the owner is also running the register there's a nonzero chance that a small store comes out ahead with credit cards because the till isn't getting skimmed.

For a small business, there's a guarantee the till is getting skimmed to the tune of several percent on every card transaction.

 

[bozzykid]

how is your Walgreens rewards integrated into ApplePay? I have a Walgreens rewards card that's store in my AppleWallet, along with my credit cards but the two are not integrated at all.

If you tap the terminal before your items are totalled, it will input your Walgreens card automatically. Then you just tap again once totalled and it will pay.

 

[Peter K.]

I wonder if CVS will do the same as Walgreens where your rewards card is integrated into ApplePay.

Hope so. NFC-enabled rewards card is cool and convenient.
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Yeah, hoping Target jumps on board at some point....I'm not sure about Walmart, based on what I've read, Walmart Pay seems to be doing decently.....If the biggest retailers (in the US) accepted it, that would another huge win for Apple Pay.

Target jumping on board would be great, though I don’t ever go to WalMart anyway. Some of them are like visiting another country!

 

[Kaibelf]

Vote with your dollars. And tell them as much via a brief email, “just to let you know, I have decided to no longer shop with your company until you support Apple Pay. I value my buying privacy, and I’ve told my friends the same.”

You’re years too late. I moved my family’s prescriptions and shopping to the Walgreens across the street because it was so idiotic how CVS cut it off after the fact. I don’t go to Walmart anyway, and I honestly use target very seldom because I just don’t trust their data protection and can’t believe they didn’t embrace Apple Pay as a result.

 

[Peter K.]

You’re years too late. I moved my family’s prescriptions and shopping to the Walgreens across the street because it was so idiotic how CVS cut it off after the fact. I don’t go to Walmart anyway, and I honestly use target very seldom because I just don’t trust their data protection and can’t believe they didn’t embrace Apple Pay as a result.

Agree. Not going out of their way to support AP, is one thing, but purposely disabling NFC to thwart AP usage is another altogether. Not cool, IMO.

 

[Scorch07]

I find it weird that stores in the US have to adopt ApplePay deliberately. In Canada, widespread acceptance of tap payments is the norm and that means ApplePay is accepted by default. I haven't used cash or plastic in over a year. I don't even carry a wallet anymore.

That's how it is in the US as well, there are just very few actual cards that are contactless, so it just gets advertised as Apple Pay 95% of the time. But technically, as long as they accept contactless, they accept Apple Pay. Ingles is the only place I can think of off the top of my head that accepts contactless but doesn't advertise Apple Pay specifically.

That said, I loved being able to use Apple Pay literally everywhere in Canada when we went last summer.

 

[cub850G2]

Some 7-Elevens already support contactless just not sure how many and I have not visited one that does yet.

 

[Tytygh]

Some 7-Elevens already support contactless just not sure how many and I have not visited one that does yet.

Here it is in action. Same terminals as Wal-Mart.

 

[powaking]

Went to the 7-11 up the street and noticed there was an icon on the POS showing Apple and Android pay symbol so I tried using my iP7 and sure enough it worked. As I walked away I can hear the cashier say to another ‘we support Apple Pay now?’. I wonder if its still rolling out to all stores so may be worth trying if you see the symbol on the POS.

Some 7-Elevens already support contactless just not sure how many and I have not visited one that does yet.

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how is your Walgreens rewards integrated into ApplePay? I have a Walgreens rewards card that's store in my AppleWallet, along with my credit cards but the two are not integrated at all.

It’s integrated in the sense that the POS will read the rewards card and use NFC to transmit the card info to the POS.

 

[JGRE]

I have used cards to pay in Germany for over twenty years, and have used contactless payments there many times. I am not sure where you got your info (or perhaps prejudice) from. Even the discounters in Germany (Aldi, Lidl etc.) accept contactless or card payments.

Exactly, Edeka as well. There is not a single grosser in the Netherlands that will accept credit card. Strange enough Aldi is also in the Netherlands, but no credit card payments. Must be the high fees on credit cards overhere.
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Funny how this headline suggests the importance of Germany to be the same as some retail chain in America

Why is that?

 

[lartola]

WMP does take a few steps but I always use it. It's tied to their "Savings Catcher" program and our AMEX card. I wouldn't use it if it was limited to a debit card...

But Walmart pay still requires an internet connection on the customer's device at the time of making the payment. Apple Pay doesn't.
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Agree. Not going out of their way to support AP, is one thing, but purposely disabling NFC to thwart AP usage is another altogether. Not cool, IMO.

Furthermore, they weren't just thwarting Apple Pay usage. They were also blocking every single other form of contactless payment except for Samsung Pay, including mobile payments such as Fitbit Pay, Google Pay and even contactless cards. Samsung Pay got around their nfc blockage because it could use the magnetic stripe readers instead of nfc (but still many CVS cashiers often confused it with Apple Pay and told customers it wouldn't work).