Andre Yoskowitz
26 Jan 2014 12:35
According to the WSJ, Apple is looking into creating a platform to allow users to purchase goods at physical stores through their iTunes accounts.
Eddy Cue, Apple's App Store boss, has been meeting with industry executives to discuss the company's interest in a payments platform for goods and services.
The industry for mobile payments is getting somewhat crowded with PayPal, Google, Square, Stripe and others fighting for your business. Forrester Research estimates that $90 billion in mobile transactions will be processed in the US by 2017, up from $12.8 billion in 2012.
Currently, Apple controls payments for digital books, movies, music and TV purchased through iTunes, as well as paid apps. Customers in Apple retails stores can also buy some products by scanning the item and using their connected credit card, as well. So far, however, buying physical goods and services is not an option using your linked iTunes account, meaning you must re-type your credit card information manually.
If Apple were to pursue mobile payments, it could be a massive game changer. There are currently 575 million iTunes account users, with nearly all having linked credit cards.