The E-Wallet service PayPal have innovated once again to allow their users to make, what they’re calling, more personal payments. Now their customers can share their payment details with a single link.
If you’re hoping to be paid from one of your friends and family for a loan or to split a cheque you can just send them your personalised link. From there they can log into their own PayPal and pass the payment on to you in a streamlined system.
PayPal users could already send money to another person by searching for their username or email but this system has more of an emphasis on the sharing of the details via a single link. This means that it can be shared through a text, email or instant messaging services which are all available on modern smartphones. This option to share and spread these details without risk of fraud would significantly change the payment market as we know it.
We may see this technology in a number of applications before long and these will be in an effort to make the purchasing process easier. Everywhere from online clothing stores to online casinos could bring in this technology to smooth the road for their customers. Many already go and play mobile casinos with PayPal but this quicker system may be used for faster withdrawals. In an age where mobile games are becoming more popular players don’t want to have to pause and find their payment details but they could authorise the purchase quickly by using this new technology.
With internet now available in most places that we go this could lead to a more modern way to pay in our day to day lives. It’s common for cafes to boast free Wi-Fi but in the future this could allow customers to pay for their orders simply by typing in the café’s unique link on their smartphone. Although this product isn’t set for commercial use yet it could be the newest technology to change the way we pay for goods and services. The contactless card was the last big one and this has proved to be more than just a flash in the pan as many use this service on a daily basis now to make their lives more convenient.
Convenience is a huge commodity in modern life and any product that saves time is automatically a winner with consumers. PayPal are attempting to corner the market on mobile phone payments to compete with the popular Apple Pay. These free services boast nothing to lose for the customer and can prevent hassle from quibbling over small change or keeping a track of who has paid what.
Whether this payment method will be successful or not is yet to be seen but if it is then it could change how we make payments to friends and family. If it does well in the personal payments market then it could be escalated and applied to the commercial market. This would come with its own range of challenges and the product may need to be changed considerably to suit the needs of the customer.
PayPal have been churning out innovative new payment techniques in recent years to improve how we exchange money and most of these services come without a fee. They’re dedicated to speeding up and aggregating payments in one simple process, whether it’s online or in person. As technology continues to break barriers we may see even more interesting and daring feats from this company. They’ve hinted that wearable payment methods may be their next step and this could steal the thunder of the iWatch