If you thought using Apple Pay was already easy, prepare to be amazed. It’s even easier when you enable Express Transit mode. In New York City, Portland and London, you can now pass the ticket barrier with just a wave of your wrist. And even if your local transit authority doesn’t support Express Transit mode yet, it could be coming soon.
Wanna give it a try? Here’s everything you need to know.
The last of Australia’s big four banks to adopt Apple Pay says that it will support Apple’s mobile payments service.
While Australia is just one market of many where Apple Pay is available, its arrival in the country has been particularly fraught with challenges. Westpac’s support marks the end of that particular story.
One of the best features of Apple Pay is finally starting to roll out to more public transit systems in the U.S. next year.
After being adopted by Washington D.C. and New York City this year, Apple Pay with Express Transit mode will reportedly be adopted by Philadelphia and San Diego next year, with other major cities planning to support it out by 2023.
Commuters can now use Apple Pay, along with other contactless payments systems, to pay for their travel at New York’s Penn Station.
That’s because the subway station has adopted the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s OMNY contactless fare payment system. The 34th Street-Penn Station is one of the busiest transport hubs in North America. This should help make travel from there a little bit more bearable.
Apple Pay Express Transit is now available across all Transport for London services — including the Underground, buses, and trams.
Commuters can use the feature with iPhone or Apple Watch to pay for rides faster than before. It does not require transactions to be authorized with a face or fingerprint, so the whole process takes seconds.
For select purchases made using Apple Pay over the next week, Apple will donate $1 to (RED). The charity, which Apple has long had a partnership with, raises funds for HIV/AIDs program in sub-Saharan Africa.
The Salvation Army red kettle, a tradition begun back to the 19th century, has been updated for the 21st century. Passersby can now donate to this charity with Apple Pay or Google Pay.
A new German law forces Apple to allow other mobile payment services to use NFC on iPhone.
Apple has allowed only Apple Pay to take advantage of the technology until now. But Germany has decided that it won’t stand for that anymore — despite Apple’s concerns.
In August, EU antitrust investigators sent a questionnaire to banks and developers of rival payment systems about Apple Pay. They’ve gotten an earful, according to Margrethe Vestager, the EU Competition Commissioner.
European antitrust regulators are asking online retailers if they are contractually obligated to use Apple Pay over rival services.
The European Commission suggests it has information that Apple could have restricted online payments for goods and services using rival payment solutions. This would be in breach of EU antitrust rules.
