Apple Pay is expected to be available in 60 percent of retail locations in the United States by the end of the year, Apple's VP of Apple Pay Jennifer Bailey told Fortune today in an interview at the company's Brainstorm Reinvent Conference.
Since Apple Pay's 2014 introduction, Apple has worked to bring it to 24 countries around the world. Apple has to negotiate deals with each and every country where Apple Pay expands, so it's been a slow process, but growth is strong even outside of the United States.
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Apple has recently been focusing on expanding the usefulness of the Apple Wallet, which houses Apple Pay credit and debit cards. Apple Wallet is now being used for purposes like public transit, customer loyalty programs, student IDs (launching next week), and may soon expand to corporate access and hotel key cards. Apple's own campus permits employees to enter using Apple Wallet.
"It's a tremendous new area for us to focus on, which is really access," Bailey said.
According to Bailey, when Apple Pay was first introduced, Apple didn't approach the launch with the aim of disrupting the credit card industry. Instead, the goal was to work with credit card companies and introduce "great customer experiences."
Apple was uninterested in pursuing a bank charter, necessary for introducing Apple Pay as a credit card replacement option, because it didn't want to face regulation.
"When we thought about Apple Pay, we thought, there are a lot of payments out there that our customers already love and trust," Jennifer Bailey, Apple VP of internet services and Apple Pay, said Tuesday morning during Fortune's Brainstorm Reinvent conference in Chicago. "We don't sit around and think about, 'what industry should we disrupt?'--we think about, 'what great customer experiences can we develop?'"
When asked if Apple makes money from Apple Pay transactions, Bailey answered the question with a "perhaps," but said that other features in the Apple Wallet are about bringing more utility to customers and making sure people "love their iPhones."
Top Rated Comments
I always ask if a retailer accepts Apple Pay, and I often get a blank stare. If a quick once over of their hardware looks promising, I’ll suggest we try it. And when it works the clerks just go wow.
I happened twice last week. At a stationary store in Hood River, Oregon, and a train store in Portland.
[doublepost=1537978694][/doublepost]No they get something like .05% and it’s paid by the bank not by the store. The store sees no difference and pays whatever the card rates normally are.
[doublepost=1537978745][/doublepost]You’re right on the dot. I install card readers for a living. Most mom and pop stores accept Apple Pay.
[doublepost=1537978801][/doublepost]Costco, Circle K, Velero, 76, Chevron all have Apple Pay at the pump in arizona.
[doublepost=1537978864][/doublepost]iPhone SE! Gives you Apple Pay and the “same phone”
[doublepost=1537978896][/doublepost]No. The card reader does all the processing. The watch just provides the card. No phone needed.
[doublepost=1537979035][/doublepost]I’ve found it’s better not to ask and just hold a phone over the card reader and they go through the motions. Even if it’s the small Verifone that faces the cashier. If you say Apple Pay they don’t know what you’re talking about. But holding the phone over it gives them the idea you’re paying them.
[doublepost=1537979178][/doublepost]If it makes it any better, there was a job posting that said they’re hiring a specialist in mobile and Contactless payments.
[doublepost=1537979345][/doublepost]I use my iPhone for public transport in Phoenix and Portland all the time. Buses and trains have Contactless card readers that just read a regular credit card. It’s awesome! Waiting on New York and LA now! They said these are coming soon next year!