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Amazon apparently set to launch Square-competitor in August as it develops biometric payment solutions

amazon reader

Amazon could be preparing to launch its own mobile credit card reading hardware in the coming weeks, according to internal Staples documents hinting at such a launch that we’ve obtained. According to the documents, Staples stores will prepare next month to stock a new product called the “Amazon Card Reader” alongside existing card readers from Square, PayPal, and Staples’ own in-house brand. The small hardware, which will likely connect to smartphones to process payments, will cost $9.99, according to the Staples internal sales systems…

Screen Shot 2014-07-27 at 1.27.45 PM

Interestingly enough, Amazon just launched a new Wallet app for smartphones last week, so the upcoming hardware will likely connect to that software.

An exact launch date for the product is unconfirmed, but Staples has asked its stores to wait until Tuesday, August 12th to put up new signage related to the Amazon Card Reader, so it’s possible that the release is scheduled for that week. Separately, sources say that Amazon’s Lab126 hardware division is developing other mobile payment-related products that focus on biometric fingerprint scanners, so it seems that Amazon will be pushing into the mobile payments world in a comprehensive way. We’ve previously reported that Apple is working with retailers on its own mass-market mobile payments solution based on Touch ID.

plano

Besides the Staples documents, we don’t have additional evidence that Amazon is gearing up to launch its card reader in August, but Staples has certainly been led to believe that the launch is happening. The above planogram for Staples shows that the Amazon Reader would be placed on the shelf beside the Staples and PayPal solutions. We’ve reached out to Amazon for comment, and we’ll update if we hear back. Reports from Re/code and the WSJ over the past year indicated that Amazon is considering moving into the Square and PayPal-dominated mobile card reading space. This month, Amazon also launched its first smartphone, the Fire Phone, to not-so-hot reviews.

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Comments

  1. fredhstein - 10 years ago

    Interesting and ironic. I recall a survey last year, the two most trusted online brands are Amazon and Apple.

  2. rogifan - 10 years ago

    And they still won’t generate any profits. Can someone tell me why Amazon is a publicly traded company?

    • bangzilla (@bangzilla) - 10 years ago

      Amazon floated as a public company to raise capital for expansion. This occurred in the mid 90’s.

    • Companies go public to raise money. A company can either get funding through liabilities (debt, like loans) or equity (selling a part of itself either to a private investor or publicly). Surely you knew that…

      If you don’t think it’s a good investment, then don’t buy it.

  3. boardflyer (@boardflyer) - 10 years ago

    Why would a retailer use Amazon’s card reader? As a retailer, you’d have to be crazy to give Amazon any more information about your customers.