MasterCard and MLB Bringing Apple Pay Purchases & Rewards to All-Star Game in Cincinnati

[MacRumors]

Fans attending the 2015 MLB All-Star Game in Cincinnati will be able to use Apple Pay for on-site food and merchandise purchases, thanks to a partnership between MasterCard and Major League Baseball Advanced Media. MasterCard hopes it gets fans back to their seats as fast as possible during the week-long festivities, streamlining the sometimes lengthy lines at concession and souvenir stands at such events.

"Nobody wants to be caught in line at concession only to hear the crowd go wild over a play they've missed. The ballpark experience is an ideal environment for quick and secure payment options so fans can get through concessions and back to the game quickly," said Cheryl Guerin, Group Executive, Global Products & Solutions, MasterCard.

"We're thrilled to partner with MLBAM to bring contactless acceptance to the 2015 MLB All-Star Week festivities. Through our longstanding relationship with MLB and MLBAM, we are constantly looking for opportunities to create enhanced fan experiences both in-stadium and online, whether that's through advanced payment capabilities or delivering surprises to fans."

Any customer using Apple Pay at the T-Mobile All-Star FanFest from July 10th through July 14th or in-stadium at the Great American Ball Park from July 12th through July 14th, will also be eligible for MasterCard's "Priceless Surprises" rewards. This will give customers the chance at winning premium All-Star branded merchandise, autographed memorabilia, prepaid cards, and more. The FanFest begins today in Cincinnati and ends with the 86th MLB All-Star Game on July 14.

Article Link: MasterCard and MLB Bringing Apple Pay Purchases & Rewards to All-Star Game in Cincinnati

 

[sp3k0psv3t]

Fans attending the 2015 MLB All-Star Game in Cincinnati will be able to use Apple Pay for on-site food and merchandise purchases, thanks to a partnership between MasterCard and Major League Baseball Advanced Media. MasterCard hopes it gets fans back to their seats as fast as possible during the week-long festivities, streamlining the sometimes lengthy lines at concession and souvenir stands at such events.

Any customer using Apple Pay at the T-Mobile All-Star FanFest from July 10th through July 14th or in-stadium at the Great American Ball Park from July 12th through July 14th, will also be eligible for MasterCard's "Priceless Surprises" rewards. This will give customers the chance at winning premium All-Star branded merchandise, autographed memorabilia, prepaid cards, and more. The FanFest begins today in Cincinnati and ends with the 86th MLB All-Star Game on July 14.

Article Link: MasterCard and MLB Bringing Apple Pay Purchases & Rewards to All-Star Game in Cincinnati

About time AP going mainstream

 

[sp3k0psv3t]

Well I meant more mainstream with sports teams and venues together in a more wide spread and accessible manner

 

[sjjones]

This is not new. I am a Reds season-ticket holder and I've been able to use Apple Pay at the concession stands all year. Actually quite handy to be able to pay with your phone when they are trying to hand you all the stuff you are buying.

 

[johnnyjibbs]

Not complaining, but Apple Pay launching in UK next Tuesday is surely bigger news than this, yet when the leak came out last week confirming that the 14th would be the date it didn't warrant a MacRumors story, nor that one of the big 4 banks in the UK, Barclays, has shunned it in favour of launching its own rival, the surely-soon-to-be-doomed bPay.

Good for Cincinnatti fans though, and I'm looking forward to using Apple Pay at sports matches in the UK.

 

[Jamo12]

This is awesome! I live in Cincinnati and will probably have a chance to go to one of the games. Now I have another reason (the promotional stuff) to go.

 

[hattonna928]

This is not new. I am a Reds season-ticket holder and I've been able to use Apple Pay at the concession stands all year. Actually quite handy to be able to pay with your phone when they are trying to hand you all the stuff you are buying.

Do you have a Visa card? Because this announcement is specifically for MasterCard compatibility. I'm not a season ticket holder but I do regularly go to Reds games and the stadium has been Visa compatible all year, but not MasterCard.

 

[nutmac]

Do you have a Visa card? Because this announcement is specifically for MasterCard compatibility. I'm not a season ticket holder but I do regularly go to Reds games and the stadium has been Visa compatible all year, but not MasterCard.

I am not sure what happened but many former MasterCard supporters have defected to VISA for majority of their signature cards (e.g., Capital One, Chase). So while these promos are all nice to have, I now have zero MasterCard, which is the first in about 15 years.

 

[hattonna928]

I am not sure what happened but many former MasterCard supporters have defected to VISA for majority of their signature cards (e.g., Capital One, Chase). So while these promos are all nice to have, I now have zero MasterCard, which is the first in about 15 years.

Yeah most banks seem to go through Visa now. I use PNC and they use Visa. So these deals wouldn't affect me anyway. I was just pointing out to that previous commenter that this was a new feature for those who use MasterCard!

 

[iHamish]

The Universal Card is a Mastercard through Citi and still doesn't support Apple Pay the last time I checked. I guess this announcement won't impact me since I won't be attending the All-Star Game.

 

[tmiw]

I am not sure what happened but many former MasterCard supporters have defected to VISA for majority of their signature cards (e.g., Capital One, Chase). So while these promos are all nice to have, I now have zero MasterCard, which is the first in about 15 years.

I wonder if it's because Visa actually discourages PIN support on chip-enabled cards and those banks didn't want to bother (whereas it's required for MasterCards even if they're chip and signature).