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Apple Pay rolling out to Starbucks this year, Chili’s & KFC in 2016


Earlier this week Apple stated that Apple Pay is off to a “great start” following its launch nearly a year ago, seeing double-digit growth in transactions every month. Now, it looks as if Apple has inked a deal that will greatly expand the presence of its mobile payments solution. Speaking at Re/code’s Code/Mobile conference today, Apple Pay head Jennifer Bailey announced that Starbucks will soon begin accepting the payment method in its 7,500 locations.

Bailey stated that Starbucks will begin testing Apple Pay in select stores this year via a pilot program before expanding it to all stores sometime in 2016. Starbucks has long supported Apple Pay in its iOS app, allowing users to choose it as a payment method when paying via the app or reloading cards, but never to pay at the register in a store. The Starbucks app accounts for 20 percent of all in-store transactions for the company.

Bailey also announced that Apple Pay will soon be supported at the fast food chain KFC and in the sit-down chain Chili’s. Apple’s Bailey noted that the KFC expansion has a special place in her heart because it was her first job.

Regarding the possibility of expanding Apple Pay to additional countries, Bailey said that Apple is working to bring the service to as many countries as possible. “We want to bring Apple Pay to as many countries as possible,” the exec stated.

Apple Pay has been expanding at a brisk pace recently. The service launched in the U.K. a few months ago, while CEO Tim Cook proclaimed that 2015 would be the “year of Apple Pay.” Some retailers, however, have questioned the uptake of the platform. For instance, Panera Bread and Firehouse both claim that Apple Pay transactions make up a low single-digit percentage of all transactions.

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Comments

  1. Thomas Yoon - 8 years ago

    Still no Canada? What a tease.

  2. Zac Hall - 8 years ago

    What about Chick-Fil-A

  3. bellevueboy - 8 years ago

    Did she get any questions about Samsung pay and how it might have wider acceptance than Apple pay?

    • 89p13 - 8 years ago

      Yeah — Right. Stick to the AndroidFanBoi pages where your opinion might be valued.

      • Leif Paul Ashley - 8 years ago

        Funny thing is the real Android Fan Bois would be complaining about Samsung pay because Android Pay is the google supported solution. Personally, I wish Apple would have made the Apple pay technology available as a license feature droid phone developers (with an Apple cert of course).

        Then there would be no need at all for android pay.

    • Gustav Åhlén - 8 years ago

      Yeah. Go to 9to5google…

    • Wes - 8 years ago

      It’s because Apple Pay only works in an encrypted token exchange mode that requires engagement on the banks part. While Samsung Pay is capable of that, it largely relies on merely copying the credentials of your existing cards, and feeding those to the terminal. No added security or new processes. One might argue much less secure than a normal card, since the NFC or magnetic process could be skimmed from an even greater distance than your regular credit cards due to the increased broadcasting power of the phone vs a card.

  4. Know every white girl can get her pumpkin spice latte in her yoga pants and uggs, with her iphone!

  5. totencough - 8 years ago

    I haven’t seen any store cards come through after iOS 9 yet. Have there been any? (I know Discover card was enabled)

  6. tonywmd23 - 8 years ago

    Letting us use the starbucks cards as store cards with apple pay is the most anticipated thing. Barcodes are stupid and inconvenient.

  7. Navid Hassani (@nvee3) - 8 years ago

    One of the biggest problem is the person behind the register. That person 90 percent of the time has no clue if Apple Pay works or not. I work at the airport and ever shop has a NFC enable payment system but the workers have no clue. Every time I try to use it they like it doesn’t work until they see me use it.

    • Thomas Yoon - 8 years ago

      I think the biggest issue with this is that people have been asking the cashiers: “Do you take Apple Pay”? Just ask if the terminal has tap-to-pay or look for the Apple Pay sticker at the checkout.

      Of course, it’s going to be harder in the States with such little compatibility so far. It should be pretty seamless in Canada (if it ever arrives).

  8. 311sie - 8 years ago

    KFC?? I can just see it…

    me: yeah, hi… let me have a 3 piece white with coleslaw and mac & cheese
    cashier: sure, dine in or take out?
    me: dine in
    cashier: cash or credit?
    me: Neither (while whipping out my phone and BOOM!!!!!!!)
    (end scene)

  9. Wes - 8 years ago

    Canada! There are NFC terminals everywhere already, and we only have like 5 banks to cover 98% of the population. Come on!

Author

Avatar for Chance Miller Chance Miller

Chance is an editor for the entire 9to5 network and covers the latest Apple news for 9to5Mac.

Tips, questions, typos to chance@9to5mac.com