When Apple launched its mobile payments solution Apple Pay back in October 2014, Starbucks was listed as one of Apple’s supporting partners. It has taken nearly four months, but iPhone users can now use Apple Pay to buy their favourite lattes at Starbucks.
Although the transition does technically allow Apple Pay users access to their favorite lattes, Starbucks customers still cannot use Apple Pay to pay directly at Starbucks stores. Apple Pay can only be used to load credit onto Starbucks cards via the Starbucks app.
Starbucks unveiled its Starbucks Card Mobile app back in 2009. The app allowed users to use their iPhones as a virtual Starbucks Card. Since that time, Starbucks has been improving on the app and building a customer loyalty program around it.
In addition to continuing to enhance its current app, Starbucks plans a 2015 nationwide launch of the “Mobile Order & Pay” app that it has recently been testing in Portland, Oregon, US. Also interesting is that in December 2014, Square’s Wallet app stopped working at Starbucks.
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