dgstorm
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With the launch of iOS 6, Apple has promised that it will integrate a brand new feature called Passbook, which can be used to collect passes to many services, such as train tickets, boarding passes, gift cards and so on. Although at the moment the number of supported services is rather limited, the Starbucks iOS application has finally been deemed compatible with the service and can now be used as a paying method.
Although Starbucks didn’t counted amongst the first set of supported merchants, Apple has made sure that the famous coffee-chain will hastily be added. In fact, they rushed the adoption so hard that the current Starbucks app for iOS is not even optimized for the iPhone 5, and appears smaller on the brand new device.
Leaving criticism aside, the Starbucks app now allows paying in stores with a mobile iOS device, basing on the Passbook feature. Of course, only iOS 6 devices are compatible with this but legacy devices should also work, because Starbucks had a similar feature implemented, without the help of Apple.
On the other hand, by involving Apple in the process, Starbucks clients can now make use of the geolocation features as well, which allow the user to pick 10 favorite coffee stores and have the payment option appear when entering the shop, without an explicit action.
Apple competitors also have similar services at hand, Google being the obvious example with its Wallet – a more ambitious project which aims to replaces credit cards in the future, by serving as the primary paying method for shops and places of all kinds, not just as passes. But without any explicit reason, the trend didn’t actually caught app. Let’s see if Apple’s marketing mechanism succeeds once again.
By Radu
Source: Starbucks Adds Passbook Support to Its iPhone App - Mac Rumors
