Intuit Debuts U.K. Mobile Card Reader (March 18, 2013)
March 18, 2013
Intuit Inc. has cast its lot into the competitive European mobile card reader market. Announced as a pilot in November, Intuit Pay includes a chip-and-PIN card reader and companion iOS app that enables payments via MasterCard or Visa. Intuit said versions of the app for other platforms, such as Android, are coming soon. The app is free, and the reader is available at no cost for a “limited time.” Merchants pay a 2.75 percent fee for each transaction.
By releasing now, Intuit Pay gets a head start on the recently announced European version of the PayPal Here mobile reader, which will debut this summer. But there is plenty of competition already in U.K and European markets, with companies ranging from small startups, like MPowa, to mobile carrier O2 jockeying for space. Terry Hicks, vice president of products for Intuit’s global business division, told TechCrunch that the company intends to expand the program to the rest of Europe and beyond.
Intuit also believes there’s plenty of demand for mobile payments readers to support multiple providers. An Intuit-commissioned study found that 19 percent of 1,000 U.K. businesses with less than 10 employees surveyed accepted card payments—and almost half said they would accept cards if given an affordable way to do so via mobile device.
