The two-year long partnership between Starbucks and mobile payment system Square is coming to an end, as the coffee company had decided to ditch the mobile payment company’s upcoming new system in favor of its own mobile ordering solution.
ReadWrite reports the end of the partnership was revealed when Square sent an email to users this week announcing plans to retire its current Wallet app, which is used at Starbucks.
Square says Wallet will be replaced by Square Order which will include a new feature called Tabs. That key feature will allow users to check into a store and pay by simply announcing their name to a cashier.
While the feature might sound perfect for a busy coffee shop, officials with Starbucks say it won’t be an option for customers.
“Starbucks is not adopting Square Order in our stores,” Maggie Jantzen, a spokesperson for Starbucks tells ReadWrite. “We opted to build our own mobile ordering solution, leveraging our own mobile app and world-class loyalty program.”
Starbucks’ mobile app with payment options has been in the works for several months and is currently being tested in the company’s Portland, OR stores, ReadWrite reports.
Back in 2012, Starbucks and Square announced a partnership that allowed customers to use Wallet at the shops. While the older version of Wallet was pulled from Google and Apple App stores earlier this year, users could still use the system at Starbucks.
Officials with Square hint in their email to users that a full retirement of Wallet could be coming soon, at which time use of the mobile payment provider at Starbucks will officially cease.
Starbucks To Square: It’s Over [ReadWrite]
by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist
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