Softcard to shut down at the end of the month; Apple, Samsung and Google to battle for supremacy
Softcard shuts down at the end of this month
After the word last week that Google was buying technology and patents from Softcard, it is no surprise that the latter announced on Thursday that it is officially shutting down at the end of the month. Apple has become a huge player in the game with Apple Pay, which has single-handedly raised the public awareness of mobile payment services.
Right now, Apple Pay and Google Wallet are limited to the number of retailers willing to build out NFC connected terminals. But a new law requires stores to upgrade their terminals to accept cards that use a chip and require a PIN, or else they will be financially responsible for fraudulent credit card transactions. This could push a large number of retailers to build out NFC systems in their stores very soon.
At the end of the day, the question isn't whether there will be enough consumer demand to make mobile payment services worth fighting over. The success of Apple Pay shows that there will be some people who will tap and pay. The question is whether or not mobile payment services can help sell smartphones.
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