BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—Based on Apple Pay’s launch and what can be gleaned about CurrentC, Apple pay is “far superior” to the payments platform that will be launched by the Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX) next year.
That is the take of LowCards.com, which outlines 10 reasons why Apple will ultimately succeed over CurrentC:
1. Apple Pay does not track user data, but CurrentC does. CurrentC wants to track everything about the transaction: what consumers are buying and how they are paying for it, and when the purchase took place—which can turn away consumers.
2. Apple Pay does not store direct access to a consumer’s bank account, CurrentC might. It is not known what CurrentC will do with bank account information. Apple Pay sees the credit card number once and then deletes it.
3. Apple Pay does not use a clunky QR code system like CurrentC, said LowCards.com. “Opening the proper app, keying in the information, generating the QR code, and scanning the code may take a consumer well over a minute. That doesn't even include what the merchant has to do.”
4. Apple Pay can use credit cards and debit cards, CurrentC just uses bank accounts. Consumers want to choose how they want to pay for a transaction, whether it is with their bank account through debit cards or by credit card. Apple Pay allows for both of those options.
5. Apple Pay with Touch ID verifies cardholder identity, CurrentC is having trouble with verification—possibly the biggest difference between the two. Touch ID will not let anyone besides the cardholder use the phone to pay. Analysts are not sure what CurrentC has for security features, but an ID system has not been mentioned and CurrentC has already been hacked during testing (http://www.cutoday.info/Fresh-Today/Apple-Pay-Rival-CurrentC-Hacked).
6. Apple Pay has tokenization. It is unknown what CurrentC has. If CurrentC is just depending on the QR codes, that is not an adequate level of security, according to LowCards.com.
7. Apple Pay can be disabled in 60 seconds if the phone is lost, CurrentC likely takes more time. Apple Pay has a tight operating system, allowing consumers to disable their iPhone and Apple Pay quickly. Since CurrentC will be scattered across different types of phones and systems, disabling the system may take significantly more time.
8. Apple Pay is proven technology with NFC already in stores, CurrentC is still in testing. The technology used by Apple Pay in terminals has been tested and has worked fairly seamlessly during the first ten days of use. It is unknown what is required with CurrentC and the QR readers.
9. Apple Pay user experience is positive, CurrentC is not at this time. “There has been a very positive response to Apple Pay. A number of beta testers for CurrentC have reported a clunky interface that still needs work,” LowCards.com reported.
10. Apple will use the leverage of its massive customer base to demand big retailers offer Apple Pay. CurrentC does not have this avid following.
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