Cantaloupe Systems is gearing up to launch Google Wallet in vending machines across Chicago, San Francisco, New York and D.C., according to All Things Digital.
So far the Bay Area start-up has installed NFC technology into 6,000 of the 80,000 vending machines in its network. Once complete, customers will be able to pay for drinks and snacks with a simple tap of their phone.
In addition to greater convenience, the new service could introduce coupons and rewards offers into the vending machine industry. Mobile apps could even allow customers to submit requests for items or complaints about machine malfunctions directly to operators.
The new technology could help revive the sagging vending machine industry, which has seen sales fall 18 percent to $19.25 billion from 2008 to 2010, according to ATD.
Read more here. ![[end]](/resources/bullet/nfcnews-4.gif)
The thing I like the best about Google Wallet is that, unlike many of its competitors, it would allow users to link all of their cards, regardless of brand (Visa, MasterCard, etc.) to their Google Wallet accounts.
From a consumer’s point of view, the best mobile wallet would store all of our cards, as well as cash and checks. What we would not want to have is a clutter of apps for each individual card type or even each card issuer. So Google is moving in precisely the right direction and I hope the promised future versions will build on that foundation. http://blog.unibulmerchantservices.com/google-wallet-goes-live-more-consumer-friendly-version-to-follow