Paypal

Survey: Apple Pay surpasses PayPal in mobile payments

Apple Pay is picking up steam and has hit an important milestone: the service is outperforming PayPal in mobile payments, according to a new 451 Research survey shared with iDownloadBlog on Tuesday. It's been gaining momentum in the mobile payments space since becoming available six months ago, primarily at the expense of PayPal.

The March study, conducted by 451 Research’s ChangeWave service, consisted of 4,168 respondents primarily based in North America, and looked at planned use of mobile payment applications and the issue of security.

Respondents interested in buying an Apple Watch are twice as likely (54 percent) as all other smartphone owners to say they’ll use mobile payment apps (29 percent said 'Very Likely' and 25 percent said 'Somewhat Likely').

And overall consumer interest in Samsung's mobile payments service (which is launching this summer) sits at a meager eight percent of respondents who are 'Very Likely' or 'Somewhat Likely' to use Samsung Pay in the future.

US/UK Online Apple Store now accepting PayPal

For the first time since its inception, the Online Apple Store is now accepting PayPal as a payment method in both the United States and United Kingdom, Re/code said Friday.

The change is newsworthy in light of PayPal's reluctance to join Apple's mobile payment solution, Apple Pay, and refusal to update its app with Touch ID authentication.

PayPal mobile payments app now available for the Pebble smartwatch

PayPal has announced that its popular mobile payments app is now available for the Pebble smartwatch. In a blog post, first spotted by VentureBeat, the company said that owners can now pay for goods and services at select locations using their Pebble, linked to their PayPal account.

Users can make PayPal payments using one of two methods: by checking into a store using the PayPal app, or by providing the store with an auto-generated payment code. Both ways require that the particular location support PayPal payments, and the latter requires special POS hardware.

eBay taking 20% off iTunes Gift Cards

If you've been on the lookout for the latest deals on iTunes Gift Cards, head over to PayPal’s Digital Gifts eBay store as it's currently offering 20 percent off iTunes Gift Cards in several denominations. The $25, $50 and $100 cards are now available with a twenty percent discount so you'll end up paying $20, $40 and $80, respectively.

That's a nice 20 percent saving right off the bat on anything you purchase on Apple's content stores. iTunes Gift Cards can be used to buy Mac and iOS apps, electronic books, movies, TV shows, music and other digital items carried on Apple's content stores.

You can also apply your iTunes credit toward the purchase of iCloud storage upgrades and use it to buy stuff in apps via In-App Purchases.

PayPal’s deal with Samsung ruined its chances of being an Apple Pay partner

Talks between Apple and PayPal regarding Apple Pay partnership soured following PayPal's deal with Samsung, reports Bank Innovation. The outlet says that the two sides began negotiations early on in Apple Pay's development, but when PayPal partnered with Samsung for Galaxy S5 payments, Apple backed out.

According to the report, PayPal’s now-former president David Marcus was categorically against the Samsung deal, knowing that it would jeopardize PayPal’s relationship with Apple. But apparently eBay CEO John Donahoe didn't agree with the executive, and essentially forced the company into the partnership.

Square and PayPal said to be working with Apple on mobile payments

In a last-minute scoop, Bank Innovation reports that it has learned that both Square and PayPal have been working with Apple on its mobile payment solution. Sources tell the site that both companies have been aware of Apple's so-called 'iWallet' payments initiative for a while now, and are updating their services to support it.

PayPal updated with loyalty card support, faster logins and more

PayPal pushed out an update to its iOS client last night, bringing the app to version 5.5. The update brings about the usual bug fixes and performance improvements, but it also adds a big new feature: support for loyalty cards.

This means PayPal users will be able to carry virtual versions of their favorite loyalty cards—such as Starbucks, CVS, and several other retailers—within the app, essentially making it a one-stop shop for payments and checkins...

Today only: PayPal offering $10 iTunes Gift card for $5

Last December, PayPal started selling iTunes gift cards and other digital vouchers through its new Digital Gifts Store.

It's perhaps the most convenient and hassle-free option to quickly top up your iTunes credit via PayPal, provided you're in the United States.

The problem is, every now and then other retailers discount iTunes vouchers.

Typically, 20 percent off is the best deal you can find and 30 percent or more off is pretty rare, but we've never seen a discount of 50 percent or more on iTunes Gift cards.

Good today only and while supplies last, PayPal is now offering a $10 iTunes Gift card for just five bucks...

PayPal integrating Touch ID into its iOS app

A year ago, PayPal CISO Michael Barrett spelled doom for existing verification methods based on passwords and expressed hope that the then unreleased iPhone 5s would kill the password once and for all. As it turned out, Apple limited the handset's fingerprint scanner to iTunes purchases and user authentication on the Lock screen.

But with the iOS 8 SDK now official, Apple has opened up Touch ID to developers and PayPal is first out of the gate with the official confirmation that it is working on integrating Touch ID authentication into its mobile apps...

Paypal updated with new security features, Smart Connect support and more

Folks who use eBay's PayPal payment service will be happy to hear that the company updated its iOS client this morning, bringing the app to version 5.4. The update brings about an important new security feature as well as various other improvements.

The new security feature allows you to attach your mobile phone to your PayPal account so that they can be sure it's you authorizing activity. It does this by linking the phone number(s) of the device(s) you use PayPal on to your 4-digit security PIN code...

PayPal reportedly offers to run Apple’s rumored mobile payment service

It's no secret that PayPal and Apple partner on iTunes billing, making the payment giant one of the few billing methods available in iTunes.

Matter of fact, PayPal has existed in Apple’s payment system for years now. It would now seem that PayPal wants to run the iTunes billing backend with other retailers as the company is "willing to white label parts of its payment service," according to a new report Thursday.

PayPal has a strong, established online presence and they've been partnering with a growing number of in-store payment companies so the firm could theoretically help build a rumored Apple-branded mobile payment solution...

How to make Cydia purchases the easy way

On episode 40 of Let's Talk Jailbreak, Sebastien, Cody and I had a pretty heated debate about Cydia purchases. There seems to be a misconception about Cydia purchases in general, and a lot of mixed information. Some users seem to think that the Cydia purchase process is this arcane and cumbersome gauntlet that makes buying tweaks and apps undesirable.

It's true; Cydia purchases can be more difficult than the average App Store purchase, but they don't necessarily have to be. Inside, I'm going to show you how to use Amazon Payments to make Cydia purchases as easy as pie.