Mobile Marketing and Commerce Strategies

Everyone’s trying to take on Square; now Fiserv is launching its own mobile payments reader, called SpotPay, which swipes cards and encrypts data into the mobile app.

According to Bloomberg, Fiserv already has 16,000 clients, and SpotPay will work with iPhones and iPads. The service also deposits checks into bank accounts, and according to the company’s group president of digital channels, Rahul Gupta, the company views this service as an “extension of the banking relationship.” Banks already have created a relationship with Fiserv and plan to offer the SpotPay to their small-business clients this fall, with a larger roll-out planned for mid-2013. Though exact details have not been released yet, Fiserv’s will be similar to Square’s, however it gives the option for banks to offer discounts or other benefits.

Yankee Group Principal Analyst Nick Holland comments

“Yet another shot across the boughs for Square, but this could be far more attractive for financial institutions in that unlike Square, this product is white-labeled, allowing financial institutions to brand and market the product as their own. This may pay dividends in that banks still have a more trusted relationship with their business customers than newcomers. However, Square is quickly becoming something of a gorilla in mobile card payments, and this advantage may be short lived. While competitors to Square are trying new angles such as white-labeling and PFM tool integration, it may come down eventually to who can offer the cheapest processing fees.”