Google has unveiled Android Pay, which will enable US-based MasterCard credit, debit, prepaid and small business cardholders to use their Android phones for everyday purchases in-store and within Android apps.
The ubiquity of mobile phones is changing the way consumers pay. According to a recent Federal Reserve report, 39% of all mobile payment users with smartphones have made a point-of-sale payment demonstrating the increased demand for simple and secure ways to make device-based payments.
MasterCard built the foundation for secure mobile transactions, having introduced contactless payments more than a decade ago and delivering a complementary digital enablement platform in 2013 that is driving today’s mobile payment solutions.
Today, MasterCard contactless is accepted at more than 3-million merchants in 68 countries around the world, and our MasterCard Digital Enablement Service enables Android Pay to deliver a simple and secure payment experience so that consumers can use their cards when, where and how they want.
Soon owners of eligible Android devices will be able to use their MasterCard credit, debit, prepaid and small business cards directly through Android Pay. For consumers and merchants alike, every purchase made with a tokenised MasterCard credit, debit, prepaid or small business card will offer the same security, benefits and guarantees as any MasterCard transaction.
And because Android Pay never shares the actual card number with merchants, consumers are provided with an extra layer of security.
“Mobile payments are here today, and are now an essential part of the core value proposition for new devices,” says Ed McLaughlin, chief emerging payments officer at MasterCard. “With the MasterCard Digital Enablement Service (MDES) and Android Pay, we can now use secure tokens to easily enable payments from a consumer’s connected device. Today’s news extends consumer choice and drives further ubiquity of payments on devices.”
“Mobile payments is big a priority for Google, so we’ve been working with major networks like MasterCard to help provide a seamless experience across a wide range of phones and stores. Android Pay will offer people further
simplicity, security and choice when paying for things with their Android phones,” says Pali Bhat, director: product management at Google.
Android Pay will be rolled out to US Android users (running KitKat or higher) in the upcoming months.