Google Wallet’s launch partners included Citi Bank as the issuing bank, Master Card as the original payment supported, and Sprint as the first mobile carrier. Since launching in 2011, Google Wallet has expanded its partnerships and now supports all major credit and debit cards, including Visa, Master Card, Discover, and American Express. A great variety of merchants accept google wallet, from the restaurant industry, to clothing retail, to pharmaceuticals.
Google Wallet is an entirely free service for both consumers and merchants. This seems a bit outrageous, but Google plans to make money by creating sponsored ads on the site.
When dealing with people’s money, security has to be a top priority. While a stolen debit card can sometimes be used without a PIN number, Google Wallet uses three different security measures to ensure the security of the customer’s funds. The Android Operating System, within the core libraries require the screen of the device must be on to enable NFC chipset access, meaning that if someone does not have the pass code to your phone, it will be difficult for them to access. The second is the sensitive financial credential data that is stored in the protected memory. Finally, the Google Wallet application requires the input of the correct PIN to open the application.
In conclusion, I think that the innovation of Google Wallet will definitely help to minimize the things that people have to carry around, which may not seem like a big deal, but some consumers will rave about it. I also think that the great deal of security provided with this application will ultimately lead to people replacing their credit cards with Google Wallet.
I have never heard of google wallet until i read this blog post. Do you think if it was advertised more, more people would use it? do you think within the next ten years this will be how people pay for stuff primarly?
ReplyDeleteGoogle wallet is something that might take a while to reach to the consumer minds, even apple pay is struggling right now to reach their customers, and the reason why is because of your second point, all this kind of services are going to change the mind of the consumers and the way we are used to do things. It might take a while, but probably it will be the primary way people are going to pay in a couple of years.
DeleteMichelle,
DeleteThank you for your comment! I do believe that within the next ten years, systems like Google Wallet and Apple Pay will be a primary means of payment. However, I think there will still be 1/3 of the population that does not adopt the technology simply because of age, education, access and even just stubbornness to change. NFC technology is changing the field so fast that people are going to take awhile to fully adopt it.
Alejandro and John are right on. I remember thinking in 1998 that within 2 years 98% of the public would be using the internet on a daily basis. I could not have been more wrong. It's always important to keep in mind all the various factors that affect diffusion rate.
DeleteThis seems like a very innovative system, but is it feasible for everyday use? Do most big stores, such as Target or Harris Teeter, support the technology needed to make it work?
ReplyDeleteLauren,
DeleteYou raise a great point! Most stores have not committed to the technology required to process NFC payments. I did read that Target was going to start implementing the technology in all of their stores over the next year. Thanks for your question!
This is crazy innovative! I love the idea but do question the security of storing all that on my phone. I do believe Google would do their best to provide heavy security, but I would worry that in it's early years of growth, there may be some issues. I would love to have this to keep my giftcards on, because I do have a problem misplacing, or even remembering how much is on them. I would love to give Google Wallet a try. Why have consumers not been majorly informed about it? And why is the PayPass not more vocalized either? I've never really heard of it until now.
ReplyDeleteAria,
DeleteThanks for posting your comments! You should be concerned about security however, the technology behind NFC stores user payment info more securely than current web processing software does. This is because special encryption is used that requires decryption at both ends of the transaction. So, arguably if you have ever purchased anything online with credit or debit you have more to be concerned with than you would if you used Google Wallet or Apple Pay. In addition you seem to have already built a case for the benefits you would have in using these systems!
My observation is that merchants are extremely slow to adopt new technology in practice. There is some good reason though. There really is no point in supplying what their is no demand for. Consider that their are now consumer 4K HD TVs, yet Hollywood is still filming in regular HD. The reason is that their simply is not enough demand for 4K yet for it to make sense to invest the extra time and money in producing 4K content.
Deletei rather carried mine inner cloth than in google wallet. people can search how many credit and debit card and how much on there?
ReplyDeleteI am very supportive of this service. I agree that for this service to be useful to consumers it has to have a very secure method for users. My only question is who is responsible if fraud or incorrect use of funds occurs to a users account without the users permission. Is Google and the credit card company responsible? Or is it one or the other?
ReplyDeleteGarret, there is likely not much that changes from our current system as far as responsibility is concerned. In any case, as a consumer you are not responsible for fraudulent charges on your account.
Deletewhat would some of the major risks of using an ewallet payment system be?
ReplyDeleteI'm sure this is probably a handy technology, but Google just makes me nervous. Once I paid for something online with my credit card using Chrome, and Google asked if I wanted to store my cc info in Google Wallet. I said No. However, the next time I went to type my information in, Chrome auto-filled all of my cc information. So I clicked on a few links, and sure enough, there was all my information in a Google Wallet account. So maybe it's a legit service/technology, but I don't like how invasive Google is about it. It makes me not trust them or their security.
ReplyDeleteWould google wallet payments be accepted in as many places that accept credit and debit cards?
ReplyDeleteI think its a good idea, but its honestly just a new way for identity thieves to get all of your information. I could only imagine the number of hackers who are trying to reach in these peoples virtual wallet.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you to an extent, Nathan. However, it is equally likely to happen through Google Wallet as it is with a credit card. The difference is that when a credit card gets stolen, it can be used by simply forging a signature. With Google wallet, the consumer has to input their password into their phone and into the app to make it work. So yes, I understand your hesitation, but I believe the level of security is only going to get stronger
DeleteI really hope google wallet becomes more popular. Android is now the most popular os on mobile, it is only a matter of time.
ReplyDelete