Japan forces Apple and Google to open their mobile platforms • The Register

sabreW4K3@lazysoci.al to Technology@beehaw.org – 241 points –
Japan forces Apple and Google to open their mobile platforms
theregister.com
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If this means that I might be able to use NFC payments because alternatives to Google Pay will exist, I am very happy. Hopefully this will also make possible to F-droid to provide auto updates.

Until earlier this year, I could make NFC payments with the app of my credit card company. AFAIK contactless payments on Android were never locked to Google Pay/Wallet. But I have no idea why there's no competition in this space. I'd expect e.g. PayPal to have something, but if they do I never heard of it - and I did look once, briefly.

Because to implement this you need to negotiate with individual credit card issuers. Basically how this works is that your phone is being issued a virtual card with the keys locked inside the phone's HSM. Then it can be used to make NFC payments just like any physical card. So you need 1. contracts with many card providers, 2. card issuance processes with these providers 3. huge amounts of compliance bureaucracy. At the end of the day it isn't really worth it unless you are a huge company and expect to have tons of users or see it as an essential feature of your phone OS.

You mean the thing any credit card issuer does anyway?

Most credit card issuers don't issue credit cards to random apps by solo developers.

It seems many banks/providers used to had this functionality and just stopped maintaining in favor of Google/Apple Pay.

Hopefully they decide to do it again.

Why would they do that when Google and Apple already do all the work for them?

Huh...my F-Droid already does auto updates 🤔

Unattended? Unrooted? What Android version?

I still have to confirm each install, wich is a bit tedious, and was looking around for a new phone.

I'm confused why would you need a phone to pay via NFC. All you need is your card.

I'm confused why you would assume that there isn't any context where someone might need to store their cards on their phone instead of carrying a wallet. Have you considering asking why instead of assuming everyone is like you? Is amazing when you get to know other perspectives.

Last I checked making a statement stating that you're confused about something counts, semantically, as a question. No question mark needed.

But, fine, if you don't want to tell me you don't have to. I'm able to contain my curiosity. Certainly can't put my ID, driver's license, cash, and a hair tie into my phone. Nor, for that matter, put my phone into an ATM.

I can store my government issued ID, a driver's licence, store limited cash behind my phone cover. And do cardless withdrawal from ATM if I need more. I have not needed a hair tie but if I did I'd wrap it on my wrist. Have not carried a wallet in years.

Everyone's circumstances are different.

As of last month, I can now, in fact, store my driver's license on my phone. Can't wait to use it for nights out with friends, no risk of losing my purse and the app even hides your address unless you specifically allow it, so no skeevy bartenders can read my address when they "card" me :)

  1. I can usually pull out my phone faster than taking a card out of my wallet.
  2. Phone-based cards typically have significantly higher limits than physical cards. (I can tap hundreds of dollars with my phone, only about $100 on my card.)
  3. The phone needs to be unlocked which is safer than the card which just needs to be tapped with no other authentication.
  4. One less thing to carry around.

I use phone every day at office so I don't need to get the wallet out of my jacket when going to the canteen to buy lunch. It's literally the reason I started using my phone to pay. Too many times I forgot my card...

Much higher floor limit, and no need to enter your PIN every X transactions.

Some countries have limits to nfc payments with a card. Finland has 50e but with a phone no limits (unless the bank limits).