If you’ve ever made a contactless credit card payment in a retail store, you’ve likely run into a VeriFone NFC-terminal: recent estimates put it at approximately 60% global market share for EMV payment terminals, for example. Today, the company is launching a new campaign along with payment processing company Vantiv that encourages Verifone’s massive network of clients to upgrade their terminals and get ready for Apple Pay:
“The inclusion of NFC technology in iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus is a big step forward for the use of smart devices in commerce,” said Shan Ethridge, vice president and general manager, North America Financial Services Group, VeriFone… Together with Vantiv, we can ensure merchants have the platform they need for both EMV card payments and secure, NFC-based commerce. This competitive offering will unlock the potential for exciting new experiences between merchants and consumers.”
Since Apple first launched the Apple Pay service in the US earlier this month, it’s been working to roll out support for additional banks and cards types. The other piece of the puzzle is support from merchants and payment processing companies, some of which have decided to disable support for Apple Pay on NFC terminals in order to push a competitive service. While some supported NFC terminals abroad are capable of accepting Apple Pay payments, users are currently only able to load US-based cards.
On that note, Verifone points out that all of its NFC-enabled VeriFone terminals are capable of supporting Apple Pay, but it’s also introducing and advertising a new NFC-ready VX 520 terminal as part of the campaign for retailers that decide to upgrade their terminals.
