Last year, eBay acquired Braintree to bring mobile payments to PayPal, and it seems like the acquisition is already bearing fruits. PayPal has now announced “One Touch" mobile payments and it looks like the company aims to rival the commonly used credit cards with its newest product.
Having 152+ million active users, PayPal claims remembering IDs, passwords and card numbers will be a thing of the past, as the new technology will allow users to pay quickly and securely with just one touch. The company (somewhat boldly) describes the experience as “magical”.
The project is now in beta for selected developers and merchants in the US, and is expected to be released to every user in the coming weeks. Customers will be able to choose their source of funding including their credit cards and bank accounts linked to PayPal to pay when using the "one touch" feature, and they will be able to opt in or out any time they choose. PayPal claims the trade off between security and convenience is now gone, allowing mobile users to pay in a both secure and easy way.
The One Touch app will support both iOS and Android, and will be powered by v.zero SDK, an open platform that offers a variety of payment options.
It should be noted that "One Touch" technology will utilize transactions in mobile applications which is different than the NFC based physical purchases using your mobile. Long story short, the new technology will only apply to shopping using mobile applications.
For those interested, you can sign up for the beta at Braintree"s website.
Source & Image: PayPal