MCX Goes On the Defensive, Offers New Details
Oct 29, 2014, 1:23 PM by Eric M. Zeman
MCX took to its company blog today to "set the record straight" on what its forthcoming CurrentC product will and won't entail. First and foremost, MCX said participation in its payment service is voluntary. "MCX merchants make their own decisions about what solutions they want to bring to their customers; the choice is theirs. When merchants choose to work with MCX, they choose to do so exclusively. Importantly, if a merchant decides to stop working with MCX, there are no fines." In other words, companies that pick CurrentC to power mobile payments in their stores will not be permitted to accept alternate mobile payment services, such as Apple Pay or Google Wallet. MCS will not penalize members that decide to switch allegiances. According to MCX, CurrentC will work with most Android or iOS devices and will offer loyalty programs, coupons, and payments all in a single transaction. It claims to meet the industry standard when it comes to fraud protection, and will allow consumers multiple different payment methods (credit card, merchant card, bank account). MCX claims consumers will be in control of their personal data (including location) and they can share as much or as little as they want with retailers. The company believes its QR code-based system will work well at retail locations, and points to the success Starbucks has had with a similar system. It said it might add other payment options, such as Bluetooth, down the road. MCX came under fire this week after CVS and Rite-Aid, which support CurrentC, ceased accepting Apple Pay and Google Wallet. CurrentC is currently being tested in select markets and won't fully launch until next year.
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Comments
Hmmm...
> payment service is voluntary. When merchants choose
> to work with MCX, they choose to do so exclusively.
So CVS and RiteAid chose to use MCX, purchased their terminals and licensed their processing system-- which included NFC-- and then when MCX offers an alternate AS YET UNDEPLOYED solution, MCX has the right to disable functionality their customers paid for.
> Importantly, if a merchant decides to stop working with
> MCX, there are no fines.
Except if you happen to own thousands of stores with tens of thousands of terminals that you already purchased. Then you have to pay to replace the whole system.
I call bullshit.
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This is all really irrelevant
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aaaaaaand they just got hacked...
Bluetooth?!?
Although, with all this talk of QR codes and Bluetooth as the backbone of the system, maybe they're going to announce its backward compatible to an old Motorola RAZR flip phones.
No, you wouldn't have to pair anything. As I understand it, it would use Bluetooth Beacons to detect and confirm your proximity to the register. It's great for one...
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