Why Retailers Are Resisting Apple Pay

October 31, 2014 in Daily Bulletin

Soon after Apple Pay launched retailers such as CVS announced that it would not work on their systems. Why would shops resist an easier way for customers to give them money? Davey Alba explained:

  • MCX is a group of retailers who agreed to develop their own mobile payment solution, long before Apple Pay had been announced or discussed.
  • Having signed up to it, it is possible that members would have to pay a fine if they adopted any other solution – although MCS states that this is not the case.
  • MCX’s solution is more attractive to retailers since it ties directly to bank accounts rather than going through credit cards, cutting down on the fees that have to be paid by merchants and customers.
  • In contrast Apple is believed to get a cut of every Apple Pay transaction, making it lucrative for the technology company, though not so much for retailers.
  • Retailers also prefer MCX because they’ll have access to the shopping data and use it to offer promotions and discounts to customers. Apple Pay does not allow for this.

Read about the hurdles that the MCX solution faces, the technical differences between the two, and more over here.

Source: Wired