The smartphone payments startup has introduced digital gift cards into its mix to compete with PayPal.
Smartphone payments startup, Square, Inc., has upped the ante in the battle against PayPal for a dominant position in the mobile commerce environment, with a new feature that allows retailers to sell gift cards to shoppers.
This updated version of the Square Wallet application allows for the purchasing and redemption of gift cards.
The app is compatible with both iPhone and iPad devices, as well as those running on the Android operating system. The mobile commerce gift cards will be available in amounts ranging from $10 all the way to $1000. These payments are accepted by merchants by using a small device that plugs into the tablet or smartphone of that seller.
These new mobile commerce gift certificates are the latest effort to draw consumers away from PayPal Here.
This is the primary competition to the startup company. It is another service that works with tablets and smartphones, and it has the large eBay name and a much longer period of having established itself to its advantage. The gift certificates from Square could make a considerable difference in boosting the company’s share in the mobile commerce marketplace.
Juniper Research has estimated that mobile commerce transactions, as a whole, will likely reach $170 billion by the year 2015. This would be an increase of approximately $60 billion over last year’s figures.
According to the chief operating officer at Square, Keith Rabois, “These are mostly empowering merchants that haven’t had gift card programs.” It gives any retailer using Square’s mobile commerce payments service the opportunity to offer gift cards to consumers through the use of the app. According to Rabois, there isn’t any setup required beyond the application.
The recipients of the mobile commerce gift cards through Square can integrate them into their Passbook on their Apple device, as that service allows for the storage of gift certificates, loyalty cards, digital tickets, and other similar accounts. This increases the likelihood that iPhone and iPad owners will give the Square service a try, which provides exposure to a significant number of shoppers.