Launch Of Android Pay Still Pending

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

The highly anticipated launch of Android Pay, Google’s forthcoming payments platform and rival to Apple Pay will allow consumers to pay using their Android smartphones at point of sale as well as make purchases within mobile applications. Despite rumors that the payment solution would launch at the end of August, Tech Crunch reported that according to sources familiar with Google’s plans, Android Pay is not launching yet.

Google announced the development of Android Pay at the Google I/O developers conference in San Francisco in May. Android Pay will allow people to unlock their phones near a merchant’s contactless terminal to pay. A confirmation and transaction details will appear on the phone.

Tech Crunch reported that rumors of the launch began to circulate after Android Police found a notice to employees at McDonald’s indicating customers could begin using Android Pay on Aug. 26. A second McDonald’s memo was also posted to Reddit, again referencing the August 26 date.

Even though it hasn’t launched, the payment option will be in use soon, and the latest Google Play Services upgrade (version 8.1) gives users an option to choose Google Wallet or Android Pay as their method of payment under “tap and play” options, as PYMTS.com reported. 

Earlier reports suggested that Google would time the release of Android Pay to sync with the introduction of the Nexus 5 (2015) device, but Google has not made a formal announcement regarding the release date of Android Pay.