Reports are going around that Google is considering launching an online payment service that would compete with PayPal. An anonymous online retailer told the New York Times about it.
Apparently Google has talked to this retailer about collaborating on the project. It is being referred to as Google Wallet, but this has not been officially confirmed.
Google has also earlier filed documents with the SEC to establish the Google Payments Corporation.
Quite what the service in its final incarnation will look like, no-one, including Google, is willing to say. Online portals such as Amazon and Yahoo offer ‘wallet’ services that store credit card details safely in one place so that customers don’t have to type them into each online shop they buy from. But the NYT’s sources say the Google deal will be much closer to PayPal, which hooks accounts to credit cards so that users can pay individuals as well as merchants and can transfer money in and out.
PayPal itself announced a new product suite for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) today called PayPal Website Payments Pro. This product features three new functions including Express Checkout, Direct Payment API and Virtual Terminal.
These features allow retailers to offer shoppers more options in how they choose to pay. They can use their PayPal accounts, credit cards, or pay by phone, fax or mail.
I would guess that Google will keep all of these features in mind when it releases its so called “Google Wallet”. It will be interesting to see if Google dominates yet another area of the ebusiness industry.
Chris is a staff writer for Murdok. Visit Murdok for the latest ebusiness news.
