02/05, 7:15pm
Best Buy kicks off tech-driven Super Bowl ads
Best Buy as part of a promo has started the run of tech-focused Super Bowl ads with a segment pitching its mobile stores. The ad unites both the inventors of phone technology, such as Philippe Kahn (the camera phone) and Ray Kurzweil (text to voice synthesis) with those making newer hardware and software. Key inventors behind Instagram, Shazam, Square, Words With Friends, and others find their way into the 30-second clip.
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01/31, 4:20pm
T-Mobile sells Square readers at about 100 stores
T-Mobile has now begun selling the Square mobile readers to business owners. In mid-December, the carrier began offering the hardware in a limited-time promo. The carrier is the first to sell the hardware directly, though it's available at less than 100 stores across the nation.
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01/30, 4:45pm
Obama campaign takes on Square for donations
The Obama campaign has began using the wallet-free and wireless payment technology from Square for its fundraising purposes. Readers are being given to staff who work on the campaign, who can then use their Android smartphones, iPhones, and iPads to collect donations. This should make the process more streamlined, as the alternative involves filling out a form and writing a check or giving out credit card information or cash to the fundraiser.
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11/15, 6:00pm
Updates available for Android and iOS apps
Square has introduced significant updates to its mobile-payment apps for iOS and Android devices. The service brings several new capabilities, enabling vendors to take advantage of loyalty programs or print physical receipts. Businesses can create custom promotions that provide special discounts or other benefits to regular customers who open a tab with Card Case.
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11/08, 5:50pm
Deal could pose threat to Square's mobile service
AT&T has teamed up with Intuit to offer a small business owner the ability to process credit card transactions on their smartphone or tablet. The app, Intuit GoPayment for AT&T, pairs an AT&T subscriber's compatible iOS, Android or BlackBerry device (free, App Store, Android Market, BlackBerry App World) with a small Bluetooth credit card reader. Equipped with them, a business person quickly can capture credit card information with a swipe or a few keystrokes, get authorization, and instant payment credit.
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11/08, 1:55pm
Virgin Group's Sir Branson invests in Square
Square, maker of the hardware and software required for vendors to take credit card payments, has recently landed Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Group fame as one of its investors. This is the third piece of positive news for the company, which recently received $100 million in funding from Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers. Branson's investment amount isn't being specified, however.
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11/02, 11:10am
Square Card Case uses iOS 5 for geo area
Square on Wednesday rolled out a major upgrade to its Card Case app for the iPhone that gives it special location awareness just for iOS 5 users. A single opt-in takes advantage of iOS 5's geofencing to make payment completely hands-free at places where the app user has a loyalty card. Whenever the user is 100 meters or closer to a store using Square, they just have to mention their name to make the payment.
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10/24, 12:50pm
Square readers spread to most major US shops
Square significantly widened the reach of its mobile payment reader hardware on Monday with a retail expansion. The device was already available at Apple stores but is now available at Best Buy, Radio Shack, and Target. The reach gives it 9,000 potential places to buy the iOS- and Android-ready add-on, which normally costs $10 and should give users an equal amount of initial credit in payments.
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10/10, 3:40pm
Square to continually improve on monthly basis
Square, the company that allows the use of Android and iOS smartphones and tablets to process credit card payments, revealed on Monday that it is now processing $2 billion in payments. At the same time, the company has axed its $1,000 per week transaction limit to users. Now, instead of having to wait between a few hours to a few days, even new merchants get the proceeds from a sale the next business day.
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10/04, 1:35pm
Standalone mini-store in Tribeca for 3 months
PayPal will open a popup store in the trendy Tribeca neighborhood in Manhattan to showcase its point-of-sale features. PayPal will invite local merchants to visit the store, located at 174 Hudson, to see real-time demos of the company's payment processing technology for bricks and mortar stores. The store also features a QR code on the storefront window so pedestrians can learn more about the new payment options. In addition to handling payments, PayPal's new system is expected to allow consumers to check inventory in real-time, and provide location-aware and in-store offers from stores.
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09/26, 11:00pm
COO does not see value proposition
Amid the buzz surrounding near-field communications (NFC) features on the latest smartphones, Square COO Keith Rabois has dismissed the importance of the transaction technology. Speaking at GigaOM's Mobilize conference, the executive said his company does not believe NFC is "likely to resonate with mainstream Americans."
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08/22, 1:20pm
Square updates mobile payment app for iOS devices
Square has updated its iPhone and iPad mobile payment app, with claimed improvements in speed. A number of screens involved in the transaction process have also been eliminated, with payments said to take as short as four seconds. At the same time, the Square Card case app (free, App Store) no longer requires signatures for transactions of less than $25.
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08/17, 1:55pm
iTunes designer Louie Mantia hops to Square
Apple saw a second defection this week after Louie Mantia said he would be exiting the company. The relatively well-known iTunes Design team member, wallpaper creator, and Disney fan is joining Square's creative team to drive the artwork for its mobile payment system. He planned to be at the still-young San Francisco startup in two weeks.
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08/05, 6:10pm
Security researchers process stolen card numbers
Security researchers have demonstrated two potential vulnerabilities in Square's mobile payment system, which can reportedly be used to process fraudulent transactions. In a demonstration at the Black Hat security conference, Aperture Labs directors Adam Laurie and Zac Franken converted magnetic stripe data into a sound file to trick the Square mobile app into believing a card was being run through the swipe dongle for smartphones.
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07/08, 6:30pm
Google buying Punched to bolster Google Wallet
Google is believed to be buying Punchd in a bid to improve Google Wallet. The leaked deal, worth over $10 million, would give Google access to a mobile loyalty card system currently built for Android and iPhone users. Clues given to TechCrunch hinted that Punchd's self-titled project would still carry on.
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06/30, 12:10am
VeriFone PayWare for Tablets chases Square
VeriFone partly bowed to pressure on Wednesday with the introduction of PayWare Mobile Enterprise for Tablets. The option will give iPads, as well as Android 3 tablets, a hardware card reader and app combination that can serve as a store checkout much like Square's eponymous readers. The VeriFone option claims an edge with PIN-based debit cards and support for NFC devices that can tap to make a payment, such as a Nexus S 4G using Google Wallet.
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06/22, 4:10pm
Payment system swipes cards using smartphone
NetSecure is preparing to launch a mobile payment system for businesses in Canada. The service, known as Kudos Payments, allows users to process credit-card transactions directly from a smartphone. The offering essentially provides Canadians with payment capabilities similar to that of Square, which is limited to the United States market.
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05/23, 2:20pm
Square Card Case and Register advance mobile cash
Square on Tuesday used its special event to unveil two entirely separate apps with the aim of making traditional cash registers obsolete. Square Register for the iPad is intended to go beyond just handling payments and will track inventory, add specials on-device, archive receipts in a more accessible way. Deep analytical data will also help track habits, such as when people often buy two items together.
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05/23, 1:30pm
iPhone gets 'refined' interface
Square has released a major update of its iOS transaction app, bringing the software to v2.0. On the surface the title has a more "refined" interface, more subdued than in earlier versions. The most important addition is that of product variations on the iPad, allowing to vendors to list slight differences for their goods such as sizes, colors or flavors.
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05/21, 2:25pm
Square founder hints at Apple deal
Square head and Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey dropped a possible clue as to a deal with Apple through a cryptic Twitter update mid-Saturday. Saying just "Apple @Square," he linked to an Instagram photo of a plate of cut apples in the shape of the Square logo. Dorsey mostly makes work-related posts and isn't likely to have posted it solely for entertainment.
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05/17, 3:45pm
Square plans event for May 23
Square on Tuesday gave out invitations to its first real special event. A gathering at the company's San Francisco headquarters on May 23 at 10AM local time will provide "exciting news." Few clues were given out beyond the media being asked to "see what's in the cards."
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05/12, 6:55pm
Justice fears competition in POS market at risk
The US Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit seeking to block Verifone from gobbling up rival point-of-sale (POS) credit card information equipment vendor Hypercom. According to DOJ, the market is very concentrated. Verifone holds a 48 percent share of the US market, Hypercom, a 18 percent share, and French-based Ingenico 26 percent. Verifone had planned to sell off Hypercom's US operation to Ingenico, hoping that would pave the way for Governmental approval. However, the Justice department saw things differently.
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05/06, 6:05pm
Alludes to announcement in 2nd Qtr earnings call
Visa’s executive chairman and CEO has revealed that the company will be describing more about its mobile payments strategy in the coming weeks. In yesterday's second-quarter earnings call, the Visa executive indicated that the financial services company could be issuing an announcement as soon as next week.
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04/29, 8:40pm
Square doubles payment rate to 2m in two months
Square was known to have landed another coup on Friday after founder Jack Dorsey posted details of the company's metrics. The company is now known to have shipped 341,688 of the reader to Android and iOS users, 332,483 of which were still active. Transactions swiped by the readers were also hitting $2 million per day, or twice as much money as the company had been processing as recently as March 2.
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04/29, 9:20am
Square reader to get encryption support
Square has quietly confirmed that a new version of its reader was coming with built-in encryption. The iOS and Android device will now have safeguards even during the swipe itself. COO Keith Rabois said the goal was to meet Visa's best practices for mobile apps, including encryption across the entire process.
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04/27, 5:15pm
Visa invests in Square to spur mobile payments
Visa in a symbolic step said it had invested in Square. The undisclosed amount will be accompanied by a Visa executive sitting on the company's advisory board. Visa representative Ryan Donovan explained the decision to the New York Times as a way of spurring credit card use by getting it to businesses that wanted to, but couldn't, take payments due to the location or cost.
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04/19, 2:55pm
Credit card reader gets broader distribution
Square credit card readers are today officially on sale at US Apple Stores, says company founder Jack Dorsey. The accessory costs $10, and can be bought at either a physical location or Apple's online store. Previously the main way of ordering a reader was through the accompanying app, which updated yesterday with support for the iPad 2 camera, as well as sales tax on the iPhone and iPod touch.
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04/16, 9:00pm
Apple to carry Square readers in stores
Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey's Square payment readers got a major lift this weekend after Apple started officially selling them in stores. Both the online Apple Store and its retail shops are carrying the reader this week, including in a new black color. The company confirmed that it would be the only one with a payment device in Apple's shops and that Apple was coordinating with Square on in-store seminars, TechCrunch said.
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03/10, 8:25am
Square rebuts VeriFone on mobile payment security
Square founder Jack Dorsey in a letter rebuffed the claims made in VeriFone's smear attack on his Android and iOS mobile payment readers. The accusation of easy data 'skimming' was "not a fair or accurate claim" and overlooked the basic reality of credit cards. Anyone who you give a credit card already has enough to get information, and no encrypted system would stop this, Dorsey said.
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03/09, 1:05pm
VeriFone scares users from Square with skim hack
VeriFone attempted a classic "fear, uncertainty, and doubt" (FUD) campaign against Square today with a site and a video (below) claiming a major exploit in the mobile payment method. The credit card processing firm claimed that all was needed to "skim" and steal credit card data was a fake app that could use Square data but didn't actually process a payment. Since the hardware didn't encrypt the data, it could be adapted in "minutes" to systematically grab data from unsuspecting buyers, company chief Doug Bergeron claimed.
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02/22, 2:45pm
Square scraps 15 cent fee to make mobile pay cheap
Square today said it was dropping a fixed fee for payments from its Android and iOS apps. The startup will no longer ask 15 cents for a credit card swipe from one of its readers regardless of how much the user pays. The move will still include a 2.75 percent transaction fee but should be much less of a hit on shopkeepers and other users for very inexpensive purchases, such as food.
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02/09, 5:05pm
Tam, Dorsey team up on credit card reader
Vivienne Tam, a fashion designer known to collaborate with electronics makers such as HP on special edition products in the past, has now teamed up with Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey on a special edition of the Square reader. It will read credit cards when plugged into a compatible iPhone, iPad or Android-powered handset. It plugs into a standard 3.5mm headphone jack.
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10/21, 4:40pm
Square outs iPhone 4 credit card readers
In response to the incompatibility of its mobile payment system with the iPhone 4, Square has released an updated version of the product that is compatible with Apple's latest smartphone. The older version interfered with the new phone's antenna by contacting it with its own metal fitting. The device is now shipping, and mainly has a plastic fitting instead of metal to get rid of the interference.
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05/11, 10:20am
Should signal shipping of external card readers
Square has officially launched an iPhone-compatible version its self-named mobile payment app, following up on an earlier iPad-only release. Intended for businesses, the app processes cash and credit card transactions without needing a register or a specialized handheld. Credit card payments still require the special Square dongle scanner, which is finally expected to ship now that the software is ready at the App Store.
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02/12, 12:20pm
Small portion of transactions going to charity
Square has begun a limited public beta test of its iPhone-based payment system. In exchange for using the service, people must currently share details such as bank information, and the specific ID of their iPhone or iPod touch. The company is promising those signing up for a Square payer account that a penny from each transaction made will be sent to a charity of their choice.
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12/30, 5:45pm
Mophie reader may challenge Square
Mophie today broadcast its intent to get into mobile payment by unveiling early details of a credit card reader for the iPhone. The peripheral when attached will let owners "complete financial transactions on the go" and will come with its own companion iPhone app to handle the payments themselves. Unlike some add-ons, the Mophie entry is designed to remain attached for long periods and rests flush with the iPhone case; it doesn't appear to support the iPod touch.
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12/01, 6:20pm
Square unveils mobile pay system
Square today took the covers off of a new mobile payment system that stands to potentially overhaul how customers pay at retail and restaurants. Created by early Twitter pioneer Jack Dorsey, the self-titled service currently uses a scanning dongle that attaches to an iPhone, iPod touch or notebook through the 3.5mm headphone jack. The add-on scans a credit card and processes the payment through an online system without having to use a relatively expensive commercial card reader and service.
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