An Apple Pay loyalty program could arrive in time for the holiday shopping season
First rumored back in early September, a loyalty program that ties in with Apple Pay could arrive before the end of the year. That’s according to new information from Bank Innovation.
It was originally thought that the program would probably be introduced with the second generation of Apple Pay, slated to arrive sometime next year. But the site confirmed information from a recent piece appearing in Digiday regarding Apple Pay monetization via iAd.
The report also does a nice job explaining how the program would work:
One way they’ve [Apple] thought up is, say you’re in a Duane Reade, hypothetically. You get a push notification from Pepsi that they’ve worked out a deal with Duane Reade that you can get a free case of Pepsi. Just pick it up and use Apple Pay at the counter.
The program will probably use Apple’s iBeacon technology, because it can apparently pass “richer” data than just an NFC connection. Apple has reportedly begun to sell, or even give away, iBeacons to some retailers for this specific purpose.
With the official introduction of iOS 8.1 yesterday, the mobile payment system kicked off in the United States. Currently, only iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users can make in-store purchases using the technology. Those handsets, along with the new iPad mini 3 and iPad Air 2, can make online purchases with Apple Pay.
For other news today, see: One Chinese carrier is offering iPhone 6 Plus owners pocket enlargements, Apple Pay is already working abroad with US-based credit cards, and The first iPad Air 2 shipments are set to arrive tomorrow, Oct. 22.
