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Apple Prepares 'Apple Pay' Credit Card To Offset Slowing iPhone Sales (marketwatch.com)
An anonymous reader quotes the Wall Street Journal:
Apple and Goldman Sachs are preparing to launch a new joint credit card, a move that would deepen the technology giant's push into its customers' wallets and mark the Wall Street firm's first foray into plastic. The planned card would carry the Apple Pay brand and could launch early next year, people familiar with the matter said...
As new iPhone sales growth slows, Apple is focusing on services such as mobile payments, streaming-music subscriptions, and App Store sales. Apple Pay, which generates revenue on each transaction, is a key contributor, but adoption has been slower than executives hoped... Apple could take a larger cut of mobile payments from the card if it is used for purchases, the person said. Currently, when a consumer pays for a purchase using the digital wallet on the iPhone -- regardless of what credit card the customer charges -- Apple receives 0.15% per transaction. Apple could more than double that under the agreement with Goldman, one of the people said.
The deal also reportedly includes having Goldman Sachs offer loans to customers at the Apple Store.
As new iPhone sales growth slows, Apple is focusing on services such as mobile payments, streaming-music subscriptions, and App Store sales. Apple Pay, which generates revenue on each transaction, is a key contributor, but adoption has been slower than executives hoped... Apple could take a larger cut of mobile payments from the card if it is used for purchases, the person said. Currently, when a consumer pays for a purchase using the digital wallet on the iPhone -- regardless of what credit card the customer charges -- Apple receives 0.15% per transaction. Apple could more than double that under the agreement with Goldman, one of the people said.
The deal also reportedly includes having Goldman Sachs offer loans to customers at the Apple Store.
Really? Is there no Apple news that can't be twisted into an "Apple is dying" story?
Have they considered just lowering the damn price?
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DRM is like antifreeze, to the MPAA/RIAA it's sweet, to the consumers it's poison.
Apple iPhone sales are not slowing down but competitors are...
Which if you bother to think of what that means Apple's overall market share of smart phones is increasing, globally.
Apple is doing these other things, to also grow other areas of the company, not to offset anything. Why wouldn't you try to grow every area of the company you could. especially if you have as much cash as Apple?
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
It's more about capturing revenue that currently goes to Barclays. It's also about spreading the Apple Pay service.
Some mornings it's hardly worth chewing through the restraints to get out of bed.
get $200 off when you get the apple card only 30% APR
In what universe? jesus, Slash is clickbait fakenews bullshit now
Have they considered just lowering the damn price?
You're assuming this has to do with slowing iPhone sales. But might it be about data mining from credit card usage?
After having burnt its main fuel, hydrogen, first in proton-proton fusion, then more and more in the C-N-O cycle, the star starts burning helium into carbon, nitrogen and oxygen, under the pressure of gravitational collapse.
Further along, even heavier elements follow, but the processes are less and less exoenergetic, until finally the star explodes in a fiery event, distributing debris around itself.
Looking forward.
I use Apple Pay wherever I can, because NFC payments rock; but I don't really see any advantage to carrying an Apple Pay branded piece of plastic.
#DeleteChrome
Now everyone with money that actually wants an iPhone has dried up, they can target those that cannot afford them.
Sub prime loans thanks to Goldman.
Let's just rerun the years leading to 2008 meltdown since the reset button was pressed and the pain never really happened.
Now it's time to target those with no money or sense.
The have nots.
In this modern society where having everything you want is your god given right.
Some stores don't take Apple Pay in its current form. Maybe one purpose of an Apple Pay credit card is getting Apple Pay to work in those stores.
Of course this will help Apple but certainly not its customers. Not a good thing to make using credit even easier, other then people spend money to make Apple richer and they get poorer.
Apple needs a. cryptocurrency that they can mine on their new imac pros.
See subject (lol) & the viral hit by "The SoyBoyz": ''If you're going to TransManCisco? Be sure you wear your jimmyhats + bring Preparation H there. If you're going, to TransManCisco... You're going to meet a lot of transtesticle monsters and soyboy not men there. All across the nation: Surgical sawblade vibrations! Surgeons in motion, Sawing peckers + ball off tossing them into the SF Bay Ocean...'
* They're playing YOUR SONG again - hahahaha classic!
(Only way "your kind" would EVER get any notice &/or notoriety...)
APK
P.S.=> Quit projecting your own mental issues onto me... apk
Google announces groundbreaking AI advances and the same week apple announces a credit card. One of these companies seems to be doing more R&D in the actual field of technology than the other.
"The deal also reportedly includes having Goldman Sachs [FULL STOP]"
That is enough for me to stay far away from Apple. What's next? Equifax?
I don't know if this is a game Apple can compete in for profit. Amex has a 6% back card with annual fee for groceries. You can get 5% back cards for Amazon, gas, and Lowes. Uber has a 4% card for restaurants, and there are multiple 3% restaurant cards. There are multiple cards that amount to 2% on everything everywhere. Most of these cards have sign up bonuses on top of their rewards. All of these are loss leaders to try and entice customers into a particular set of services.
The paradox Apple may face is that a majority of people interested in Apple Pay will have very good credit ratings, and thus be eligible for all of these "loss leader" 2-6% back rewards cards. Sure, they could offer a good percentage towards itunes stuff, but itunes gift cards can already be had at an enormous discount from their face value.
I don't know where the money is here for Apple.
I know 2 people who use Apple pay and I'm fairly certain 1 of them has stopped completely. Both are hopeless fanboys who will jump through any hoop and take any abuse.
I use Apple Pay fairly routinely when possible. I like it quite a lot and use it preferentially over my credit cards. Personal preference of course. Anyway your (and my) anecdotal stories don't really mean anything.
However this could easily be the end of Apple Pay, Apple presently is maintaining the line it's not a bank, therefore does not need to comply with the myriad of banking regulations in the jurisdictions it operates this service in.
Apple isn't a bank. It doesn't even remotely resemble a bank. Facilitating financial transactions does not make a company a bank. I think you are letting your bias lead you to unsupported conclusions. Apple would have to do a LOT of things they don't do now to become a bank.
One Apple start issuing cards, it's going to be difficult to claim that they're not in the financial services industry and not subject to regulations.
Actually it wouldn't be hard at all since odds are Apple would not be the one actually issuing the cards. Most likely they'll partner with an actual bank who does the heavy lifting just like most companies. Amazon offers a credit card but they certainly aren't a bank and no one is accusing them of trying to be one.
I do not find Apple Pay convenient to use for in-store transactions over standard plastic cards, though I understand that if I had an Apple Watch that it's pretty spiffy
I do. Reasons why? 1) I don't have to get out my wallet, 2) I don't have to show ID or (usually) sign anything, 3) the merchant never gets my account information and thus they cannot lose it or have it stolen, 4) It's generally as fast or faster than using a plastic card, 5) Stealing my phone doesn't result in someone getting access to my credit cards, bank cards and other wallet contents, 6) I don't have to make physical contact (germs) with a cashier.
Now if those things don't matter to you, that's fine. I'm not judging. What works for me might not work for you. But I REALLY like being able to use my phone to handle transactions like this and cannot wait for the day when I can leave my stupid wallet at home most of the time. Apple Pay (and google's equivalent) check the boxes for me on how I like to do things.
I use cash wherever I can, because not giving any personal data or any of my money to megacorps who don't pay their fucking taxes rocks.
Boy you are really sticking it to The Man there. I'm sure you never actually buy anything from a company that isn't a local mom and pop store that makes all their goods on their farm. Oh wait, you're using a computer made by a large megacorp that doesn't pay taxes to type this so I'm calling bullshit on your fake moralizing.
There are multiple cards that amount to 2% on everything everywhere. Most of these cards have sign up bonuses on top of their rewards. All of these are loss leaders to try and entice customers into a particular set of services.
I have one of those cards. They make money because they charge the merchant 3-4% on most transactions. And no they are not all loss leaders.
Sure, they could offer a good percentage towards itunes stuff, but itunes gift cards can already be had at an enormous discount from their face value.
You're wondering where Apple will find profit in selling data? Seriously? It has effectively ZERO marginal cost to copy. The answer to this is self evident.
I don't know where the money is here for Apple.
Literally every single transaction will be a cut for Apple. It won't be their primary line of business but they could easily make a tidy profit with good margins on it.
I would love a credit card with NFC built-in that I could tap to the back of my iPhone to load it with a one-time use token for regular credit card purchases that was useless without the token. That way if the card were stolen there would be nothing thieves could do with it, no numbers printed on it and nothing pre-programmed into the magnetic stripe.