Is Apple looking to make headways into the mobile payment terminal ecosystem now?

Image credit: Mobeewave

Apple is looking to take the mobile payment business on to the next level. It is being reported that the Cupertino based tech giant has acquired a startup called Mobeewave that allows users to make or receive payments on their phones by turning it into a mobile Point of Sale thanks to the built-in NFC chip.

Though with Apple Pay, users can easily make payment at a retail store by just tapping their phones on to the payment terminal, however, the technology from Mobeewave will make this happen without the need of any extra hardware like a card reader or any additional app at the merchants end.

Apple has reportedly paid $100 million for this acquisition. While the leading smartphone maker did not reveal details about the transaction, it is known to acquire smaller startups and turn their products into core features. Siri, the virtual assistant, is one such product that was acquired in 2010 and is now one of the key features in Apple’s ecosystem, regardless of their form factor, 

The latest acquisition of Mobeewave could put it directly in competition with many payment processing companies like Square, PayPal GO etc. offering POS solutions compatible with smartphones and tablets. Though interestingly, Samsung, that has invested in Mobeewave, had earlier offered the service for its user base.

Apple has been on a shopping spree this year and has acquired companies like Dark Sky, NextVR, Voysis, Xnor.ai, Inductiv and Fleetsmith. Each of these companies is expected to play a critical role in enhancing the existing or building up new features. This acquisition gives Apple a distinct advantage as a company that has a generally affluent user base, a highly capable handled device – iPhones and iPads, and a payment card already in place. Now with an inhouse payment processing system, Apple will be the only company that offers all these solutions in house.

This service that integrates merchants directly into Apple’s ecosystem can be considered a brilliant move and also highlights how Apple is further expanding its closely-knit ecosystem, still keeping it close and tight by offering a variety of services and products. It, however, could also offer Apple immense power to flex its muscles once the services are up and running as per the plan.