Samsung is also pushing with their Samsung Pay and have already tested it in other countries and it is getting set for its US launch in September.
Advertisement
Rite Aid is the latest Merchant Customer Exchange partner to announce support for NFC-based mobile payment systems such as Apple Pay and Android Pay.
Rite Aid drew the ire of iPhone owners and TMO’s own Kelly Guimont last October when it shut off the NFC support, which shut down its ability to accept cardless payments via Apple Pay and Google Wallet. And the chain is giving up on its ban of tap-to-pay credit and debit cards.
Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook said during the company’s recent earnings call that Apple Pay will be accepted at some 1.5 million retail locations in the U.S.by the end of the year.
Other MCX members have similarly announced upcoming support for Apple Pay despite previously resisting in favor of backing CurrentC exclusively. It also places Rite Aid toe-to-toe with Walgreens, which has been one of the strongest supporters of mobile payments.
The move to accept Apple Pay is a big win for Apple given that Rite Aid decided to block the service when it was first made available last fall.
Advertisement
“Increasingly, consumers are actively seeking out and incorporating mobile technology into many facets of their life, including their shopping and purchasing decisions”, Rite Aid president Ken Martindale said in a press release. That payment solution was CurrentC, and it utilized QR-codes on camera-equipped phones to process payments. “By accepting mobile payments, we’re able to offer Rite Aid customers an easy and convenient checkout process, which we know is important to them”.
