MCX retailers contractually obliged to CurrentC mobile payments, fines incurred for accepting Apple Pay

MCX retailers contractually obliged to CurrentC mobile payments, fines incurred for accepting Apple Pay

Retailers that are part of the Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX) consortium are contractually obliged to only accept mobile payments made via the CurrentC system. The group — which features big names like Walmart, Best Buy, Target, and Gap, among others — have all agreed to use CurrentC exclusively and will incur fines should they accept mobile payments...

MCX retailers contractually obliged to CurrentC mobile payments, fines incurred for accepting Apple Pay
Retailers that are part of the Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX) consortium are contractually obliged to only accept mobile payments made via the CurrentC system. The group — which features big names like Walmart, Best Buy, Target, and Gap, among others — have all agreed to use CurrentC exclusively and will incur fines should they accept mobile payments from any competing platform, including Apple Pay, according to The New York Times.

The problem is that under the terms of their MCX contractual agreement, they are not supposed to accept competing mobile payments products like Apple Pay, according to multiple retailers involved with MCX, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. If these retailers break their contracts, they will face steep fines for doing so, these people said.

It has come to light this week that retailers within the MCX consortium have begun turning off NFC capabilities in their point of sale terminals in store in order to block Apple Pay, in doing so blocking Google Wallet and SoftCard mobile payment platforms that are also built on NFC technology. Both RiteAid and CVS, MCX retailers, made statements regarding the decision with the emphasis remaining on the customers’ best interests.

With MCX being on the brink of rolling out CurrentC, it seems that the companies involved are trying to stifle Apple Pay’s success. If Apple’s mobile payments offering becomes too popular with consumers, it may be hard to get them to try out CurrentC when it launches (not to mention embrace its clunky, QR code-based implementation and suspect data practices). The easiest way to do that? Block Apple Pay and make your stores CurrentC-only.

Can CurrentC take on Apple Pay? Will the retailers in the MCX group be forced to change their minds and accept other payment platforms? Let us know your thoughts below!

Source: NYT via 9to5Mac

Recent Posts