While Apple continues to work to expand the number of top merchants who accept their Apple Pay mobile payments service, a number of top merchants remain skeptical of the service’s possibilities.
“We’ve spoken to all of the top 100 merchants in the U.S., and about half will accept Apple Pay this year, with many more the following year,” an Apple representative told Reuters. Apple Pay is currently available at more than 700,000 retail stores and self-service kiosks — like soda machines — in the U.S., with a Canadian expansion reportedly on tap.
Some merchants continue to resist Apple’s advances. Of the 98 largest physical retailers in the U.S., “nearly two-thirds” told Reuters they had no plans to accept Apple Pay.
“They have been pushing hard and it’s been that way for months,” a source at one unidentified retailer said. “They have called and tried to persuade us even after we communicated our decision to them.”
Many of the merchants surveyed said there was simply not enough demand from customers to justify the capital outlay to add Apple Pay to their rosters of accepted payment systems. Other retailers pointed toward Apple Pay’s refusal to collect and track customer information during transaction. (Ironically, that point is considered to be one in favor of Apple Pay from the consumer’s standpoint. – Ed.)
Another obstacle to widespread Apple Pay adoption is the restrictive nature of agreements merchants were forced to sign when joining competitor MCX’s CurrentC payments system. 19 retailer surveyed cited that as a reason for joining the Apple Pay rolls. However, either MCX has let up a bit on that requirement, or the exclusivity requirement was only for a short period of time, as CurrentC member Best Buy has announced Apple Pay support in stores.
