Anyone alive in the last millennium will probably remember the era in which cash machines seemed like the most exciting innovation in personal banking—no sooner had banks gone digital than there was a wave of technical innovation that saw us hurtling towards online banking while the ink was still drying on the signatures on our card receipts.
The last couple of decades have seen unimaginable technological advancements, many of which have completely changed the way we live our lives. You may not recall the last time you had to use a physical card or enter your PIN into a machine, because contactless technology has become so ubiquitous that we already take it for granted.
The Origins of Apple Pay
As a pioneer within the industry, Apple Pay was one of the first apps to do away with the need for a separate card or payment system. Allowing users to make payments directly from their phones was yet another innovation from Apple that changed the way we use established technology.
While it may have seemed as though the concept of Apple Pay just materialized in 2014, the launch of this revolutionary technology was the culmination of years of preparation. Apple employees had been tirelessly fleshing out the idea for a contactless payment system using just a phone.
This involved working with global payment providers like Mastercard, American Express, and Visa to develop a cardless payment system. The scale of the operation was huge, and the degree of secrecy surrounding the preparations was unheard of at the time.
A lot of the most commercially sensitive work took place inside a windowless room, set up by JPMorgan, to preserve Apple’s anonymity until the launch of Apple Pay was announced.
The Impact of Apple Pay
The main appeal of using a service such as Apple Pay was the elimination of a physical card, with all the associated fallibility and potential risks. Paying via phone introduces two-factor authentication using the phone’s security features (face ID, fingerprint, etc) and negates the need for users to carry a card containing personal details.
At Apple Pay’s launch, CEO Tim Cook described cards as insecure, highlighting their vulnerability to both theft and damage. This appealed to users, and the initial success of the app in the USA was soon replicated in the UK, China, and elsewhere throughout the world, and can currently be used in ninety-one countries.
The Continuing Success of Apple Pay
Having created and instantly dominated the contactless phone payment market, other providers were very much on the back foot when it came to bringing out their own payment systems. While there are alternative providers, the global reach of Apple Pay has allowed Apple to lead the market and determine its direction.
In recent years. Apple Pay-enabled ATMs have been rolled out throughout the United States, allowing users to withdraw cash using contactless phone technology as well. This level of collaboration has proved successful for Apple, which has also partnered with Japanese card providers to allow users to replace travel cards and local credit cards with digital payments instead.
As alternative payment methods continue to deliver a convenient, safe, and secure service, they will continue to thrive. Conquering some of the more impenetrable markets, such as China, will always be a huge task, but Apple has made more inroads than many of its predecessors, so perhaps the future could see more take-up among Asian businesses and consumers.
Users in the United States have embraced contactless payments, Apple Pay, and the Apple Card with enthusiasm, but there are still some sectors that Apple could target for its payment systems. Online gaming is a huge market with billions of dollars changing hands, and users appreciate reliable and secure payment methods when playing online. Apple Pay can now be used at casinos, and positioning the brand as the method of choice for players could increase Apple Pay’s market share considerably.
Many players choose the casinos they play at based largely on the payment methods available, so it’s perfectly possible that Apple Pay could change the way people play online.
The Future of Apple Pay
As Apple itself acknowledges, the market for phone handsets and other hardware is limited, and the company’s plan is to focus on services in favor of products to secure the company’s future. The almost instant success of the Apple Card demonstrates that Apple still can innovate and improve the user experience of everyday services.
So many Apple projects have been resounding successes that it seems almost anything the company turns its attention to could be turned into another huge revenue stream. However, expanding the remit of their existing products will also help the brand grow its presence worldwide.
