Square and Google are both making efforts to counter the threat of Apple Pay, new reports claim. While the former is said to be developing its own Android tablet that could replace iPad-powered Square Registers, the latter is said to be working on a new mobile payments system called Plaso. According to a report from The Information, Square is hoping to rely less on the iPad by developing an Android-powered slate of its own. In doing so, the company would be prepared should Apple decide to block the iPad’s compatibility with Square products to encourage the use of Apple Pay. However, the device is said to be in the very early stages of development, and may still be abandoned before it ever makes it to market. Square’s biggest hurdles are not only designing the hardware and getting it built, but also convincing its customers to trade their existing iPads for new devices. The Information also claims that Google is working to deliver a brand new mobile payments system of its own that would allow shoppers to authenticate payments simply by confirming their name or initials at the register. Dubbed Plaso, the system is already being tested in a small number of retail outlets, four separate sources claim, and could eventually replace Google Wallet, which has been somewhat sadly stuttering along since its launch in 2011. Both movements are thought to be a response to Apple Pay, which is finally making mobile payments mainstream in the U.S. after Google and many others failed to do so. Launched last fall and available on the latest iPhones, Apple Pay is already responsible for two out of three mobile payment transactions, Apple says, and it is expected that 38 percent of retailers in the U.S. will be supporting the technology by the end of 2015. Now that mobile payments are taking off, it’s thought rival companies — including Google and Square — are scrambling to delivering new alternatives that could enjoy a greater level of success now that mobile transactions become more familiar to consumers. With both Square’s tablet and Google’s Plaso still in early development, there are no timelines for their release.
