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Apple

Apple To Open Payment Chip To Third Parties and Charge Fees (financialpost.com) 37

Posted by msmash from the up-next dept.
Apple will begin letting third parties use the iPhone's payment chip to handle transactions, a move that allows banks and other services to compete with the Apple Pay platform. From a report: The move, announced Wednesday, follows years of pressure from regulators, including those in the European Union. Apple said it will allow developers to use the component starting in iOS 18.1, an upcoming software update for the iPhone. The payment chip relies on a technology called NFC, or near-field communication, to share information when the phone is near another device.

The change will allow outside providers to use the NFC chip for in-store payments, transit system fares, work badges, home and hotel keys, and reward cards. Support for government identification cards will come later, the company said. Users will also be able to set a third-party payment app as their default system, replacing Apple Pay. Apple had been reluctant to open up the chip to developers, citing security concerns. The change also threatens the revenue it generates from Apple Pay transactions. The company takes a cut of all payments made via the iPhone.
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Apple To Open Payment Chip To Third Parties and Charge Fees More

Apple To Open Payment Chip To Third Parties and Charge Fees

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  • NFC is not just for payments. (Score:3)

    by tysonedwards ( 969693 ) on Wednesday August 14, 2024 @02:13PM (#64705926)
    Apple doesnâ(TM)t just use NFC chip for payments and wallet related features, but also uses for device setup, handoff between devices, NameDrop contact sharing, home automation, shortcuts, and more. Apple is only allowing third-parties to do Wallet features. Are they seriously saying that developers should be prohibited from letting you set up a new WiFi router or pair of headphones by tapping it, in the exact same way that Apple allows you to set up a new Apple TV?

    • What they are saying is that they want to be done for antitrust some more.

      This is exactly the same kind of thing that Microsoft did that saw them forced to open kernel access to Clownstroke.

      Antitrust is Apple's whole business model now.

      • Apple is not committing anti-trust unless it stops industry from creating competing phones. You cant go to the Google Play store to buy apps for your Mercedes Infotainment system, a phone is an appliance like the car is. A Samsung Family Hub Fridge (a piece of shit BTW) only lets you buy on its screen from Amazon and a few other places. No App Store. That isnt anti-competitive either. If you don't like their rules, buy another product. If you dont like the available products, make one. There is no anti-comp

        • Google doesn't stop anyone from making a payment system that directly competes with Google Pay and distributing it on their Play Store.
          Apple does.
          My old bank offered contactless payments on my old Android through their internet banking app phone before Google did

          • So McDonalds should allow Burger King to use its kitchen and cash registers to sell Burger King because otherwise McDonalds is violating antitrust?

            • No. The company that makes the kitchens for McDonalds shouldn't refuse to make them for Burger King because McDonalds said so.

              Maybe you should read up on anti-trust.

              • Let me help you out here, since logic is not your language. In the example, Apple uses NFC for conducting transactions like McDonalds uses kitchens and its registers for conducting transactions. Since McDonalds would not have to open up its kitchens or registers to a competitor, Apple analogously does not have to provide access to its NFC. Anyone else can implement and use NFC as Apple has done on their own. Apple is not stopping them. Looks like you need to learn basic reading comprehension and logic, in

                • Perhaps things would be different if the only place to buy food was either McDonalds or Burger King, and no one else can afford to get in to the food selling market.
                  Then it would be expected that McDonalds and Burger King open up their shops to third parties.

                  You seem to think that the answer to Apple not allowing developers to use the NFC API that Apple built for their own apps is for people to design, manufacture and sell their own phones running their own software stack.

          • So go use Google.

        • Once again you are literally always wrong.

          Antitrust does NOT require a monopoly position.

          It is only one way to get within striking distance of antitrust.

    • The took the Qualcomm loss as a challenge to be more like Qualcomm
    • By your logic, McDonalds should allow Burger King to use its kitchen and cash registers to sell Burger King products because otherwise McDonalds is violating antitrust.
      • No, by my logic: the phone is the property of the person who purchased it. Apple writes /some/ software for it, and gives themselves preferential treatment via access that they expressly DENY others, as enforced via cryptographic code signatures to enforce API entitlements issued by Apple. Third-parties can write code for said iPhone and even distribute outside of the App Store, but they are prohibited from communicating with the hardware - even if they wished to write their own APIs, drivers, and protocols
        • Yeah but in your car analogy, the automaker does not have to design their car so that a competitor can put their engine in it. Also, if you do not like that about the carâ"which you know ahead of timeâ"do not buy the car. There are other cars. Therefore there is no antitrust issue.
    • They have public APIs for that. And why would I want some random router company write their own WIFI setup for my phone when they can't properly write the software for their own router?

  • About time! (Score:3)

    by Sebby ( 238625 ) on Wednesday August 14, 2024 @02:17PM (#64705948)

    The change will allow outside providers to use the NFC chip for in-store payments, transit system fares, work badges, home and hotel keys, and reward cards

    Finally! Seems pretty silly to sell an expensive phone from which you can't even unlock a hotel room door from the hotel's own app.

    • At this rate an iphone might be a usefull as an Android phone in about 10 years.
    • Remember, every time you use your Apple device to open that hotel room door Apple will want 30%.

      30% ff what you may ask? I am sure Apple will figure out a payment plan for you, don't worry about details.

      • Remember, every time you use your Apple device to open that hotel room door Apple will want 30%. 30% ff what you may ask? I am sure Apple will figure out a payment plan for you, don't worry about details.

        Lol yeah - they'll just demand it from the hotel directly instead - I'm sure they'll put in some sort of "privacy-preserving" (read: buzzword salad) way of tracking each door unlock, and charge the hotel a "Core Convenience NFC Fee" each time.

        Watch this become reality (ooops! Now I've gone and used one of their precious trademarks - guess I'll get hit with a "Core Trademark Usage Fee"!)

        • charge the hotel a "Core Convenience NFC Fee" each time.

          Watch this become reality

          I'm guessing you might have only read the summary on Slashdot - what you suggest is, sadly, exactly what they're planning: [financialpost.com]

          Under the new approach, though, Apple will still require developers to pay “associated fees” to use the NFC chip and enter into a “commercial agreement,” according to Wednesday’s statement.

          This under the guise of "security and privacy standards" - absolutely nothing to do with siphoning in more money, of course.

        • Damnation!  Posters here talk about these APPLE-taxes as if they were laws of the universe. Do you really have that much extra pocket-money or enjoy being abused?  Well good for you. Some people staying in hotels LIKE metal keys;  some DEMAND a metal key(s) to open the door to their room.  Mechanical nearly pik-proof keys are available/ See The Lock Picking Lawyer for details. 

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by hawk ( 1151 )

        >30% ff what you may ask?

        The door, of course!

        And if you get annoyed by the resulting lack of privacy, and head down to the restaurant, apple get's 30% of your meal . . .

    • Re:About time! (Score:4, Informative)

      by DamnOregonian ( 963763 ) on Wednesday August 14, 2024 @04:47PM (#64706530)
      You can open rooms with it. The caveat, is that the Hotel app needs to integrate with Apple Wallet (In my experience- Hyatt, Disney do this)
      This is about letting a device implement its own NFC sender/receiver without using the card/wallet system.

    • Not more than 15 minutes ago, I unlocked my hotel room door with the key provided by the hotel. No phone required.

    • You've been able to do this for years. Next stupid claim, please!

  • your hotel costs 30% more!

  • So everytime I use the NFC to open my door Apple wants to get paid?

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