Apple Pay is set to revolutionize the way we pay for products while we're on the go, but recent news from Chevron hints at the inclusion of the mobile payment service coming to its gas station pumps in the near future.
"@Chevron I'd sure love to be able to use Apple Pay at the pump in 2015. Thanks! #ApplePay," wrote Twitter user @SingAsana in response to Chevron's own tweet saying that they hope to have Apple Pay at their pumps as early as 2015. But the oil company retracted the tweet and posted a follow-up response to clarify what they knew would be a big deal to Apple users.
"@SingAsana To clarify, Chevron is working alongside Apple to integrate Apple Pay at the pump, but a timeline is not set," the follow-up said.
Right now, Apple Pay is available at over 220,000 stores across the country, and its inclusion in gas stations would be nothing new. But the main thing that's getting everyone excited is the fact that this would be the first time Apple Pay would be available right at the gas pump.
Apple Pay is a mobile payment and digital wallet service that allows payments to be made with any compatible Apple device, including the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, Apple Watch, iPad Air 2, and iPad Mini 3. The service works through a contact-less method of waving the device in front of a special kiosk that will record your payment automatically through Visa's PayWave, Mastercard's PayPass, and American Express' ExpressPay. Many other banks are also on board to offer their own payment bridge through the service.
So far, reception to Apple Pay has been generally positive, but acceptance is expected to grow as the service expands. Previous mobile payment methods have been attempted over the years, but all have failed to gain traction. Apple is hoping that Apple Pay will revolutionalize not only the way consumers pay for goods and services, but also increase security of cash-less transactions.
According to research firm ITG, Apple Pay accounted for 1 percent of digital transactions in November which puts the service only slightly behind the much older Google Wallet's 4 percent share after the service was launched in 2011.
But it's PayPal that is the real competition for Apple in this market. "Apple Pay could pose a major threat to market leader PayPal's current dominance of the Mobile Payment space," according to the ITG report citing Steve Weinstein, Senior Internet Analyst at ITG Investment Research. "Citing PayPal's significant infrastructure barriers (a challenging relationship with payment counterparties and the lack of biometric capability) in comparison to Apple Pay's compelling mobile payment solution, Weinstein believes that it will be difficult for PayPal to match the ease of use and consumer appeal of the Apple solution."
"We are thrilled to innovate in the area of retail fuel transactions by making the customer experience for payment and loyalty as smooth, seamless and secure as possible," said Glenn Johnson, general manager for Americas products marketing sales and services at Chevron. "Offering Apple Pay to our customers further solidifies our commitment to delivering high-quality products and services while in a secure and convenient manner."
Apple Pay is currently only available in the United States, but the Telegraph reports that British banks are expected to gain the service in "the first half of 2015." A recent job listing stated that Apple had plans to roll out the mobile pay service across Europe, the Middle East, Indiana, and Africa, but there's no word yet on when that would happen.
