Google Pay: Google wants to end confusion over its payment platforms
Android Pay, Google Play and Google Wallet are all joining forces.
File this under "long overdue": Google is uniting all of the different ways that you can pay for something using its services under a single brand, Google Pay.
Currently, officially-sanctioned ways to make payments through Google include Android Pay, its platform for contactless payments from your credit or debit card using your phone; Google Play, its Android app and media store which can also be used for some subscription services; and Google Wallet, its electronic money transfer system.
All of those services are now going to be rebranded under a single name: Google Pay.
The newly-unveiled Google Pay logo. Picture: Google
"Today, we're excited to announce we'll be bringing together all the different ways to pay with Google, including Android Pay and Google Wallet, into a single brand: Google Pay," Google payments VP Pali Bhat wrote in an official blog post.
A handful of US services have already added Google Pay support, including Airbnb and Dice. Bhat hinted that further enhancements were planned. "Bringing everything into one brand is just the first step for Google Pay," he wrote. "We can’t wait to share more."
Bhat's post didn't offer much other detail though, so we'll have to wait to see how fully it impacts services. There's no word on how this will impact Pay with Google, the service Google introduced last October to make it easier to add payment details when you shop online. Given the similarity in branding, I'd expect that to also merge into the Google Pay platform.
Regardless, the changes are likely to take a while. Google already has partnerships with numerous Australian banks for Android Pay (you can check out the full list), and pushing updates through all those partners won't be an instant process.
Nonetheless, with Android phones dominating the Australian market, we can expect that lots of Aussies will be using Google Pay in the future. Whether that will impact its most obvious rival, Samsung Pay, remains to be seen. Samsung has the biggest share of the local Android market, so it will push hard for customers to use its platform rather than Android Pay. Ultimately, the deciding factor may be which platform your bank supports.
Angus Kidman's Findings column looks at new developments and research that help you save money, make wise decisions and enjoy your life more. It appears regularly on finder.com.au.
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