“There are few things so obvious in technology that you’re truly able to say it’s a matter of when they will happen, not if. Paying for things with your phone seems to be one of those things, judging by the number of companies that are trying to make it happen. Google, Microsoft, Intuit, PayPal, Venmo, and Square, just to name a few, would like to replace your wallet with your phone. Square has just inked a massive deal with Starbucks that’ll put in over 7,000 stores, where it will process every single credit and debit card transaction. And later this fall, customers will be able to use Pay With Square, the app that’ll let them tell baristas, “Put it on Joe,” without ever pulling their phone or wallet out of their pocket. The Square deal is a big deal, precisely because it’s, um, a big deal. The thing about mobile payments is that while they involve real currency — your real dollars — they don’t quite work like dollars or credit cards.” w/ photos
