Android Pay is still hoping for takeoff, but Google already has its sights on the next generation of alternative payments with a hands-free solution being piloted by McDonald’s and Papa John’s.
The strategy – leveraging a smartphone application, location services and a cashier to authenticate a purchase without the need to pull out a phone or card – has been tried before without much success, although the timing may not have been right. Now that mobile payments are beginning to catch on – with Android Pay facing stiff competition on multiple fronts – Google is angling to be ahead of the curve on what it hopes will be the next phase in payments.
