Apple, Inc.

Woonsocket, R.I. –- CVS Health Corp. and Rite Aid. Corp., which have both used the near-field communication (NFC) technology that supports Apple Pay, have disabled their NFC payment systems to block Apple Pay from working in their stores. 

 

New York -- The cat is finally out of the bag. Former J.C. Penney CEO and Apple retail head Ron Johnson confirmed that he is launching a new company—but it’s not a tech-gadget delivery service as was widely rumored. Instead,  the new initiative, set to launch in 2015,  is designed to help online hoppers make the right product choices.  

By John Gessau, ACI Worldwide   Wow. What a month in the world of mobile payments.   So much has been said and written since Apple Pay was announced on Sept. 9th, up to its official launch on Monday, Oct. 20. If I had dollar for every time Apple Pay was mentioned in the press and in blogs, well…   But Apple Pay isn’t the only thing that has happened since Sept. 9th. There has been a lot going on around the globe:

New York -- Real estate firm RKF announced that it has arranged a 5,900-sq.-ft. lease for Boardriders in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District. Located on the south block between Ninth Avenue and Washington Street at 408 West 14th Street, this will become the Quiksilver concept store’s first Manhattan location.  

Minneapolis -- Target Corp. on Wednesday fired the first retail salvo of the holiday season, announcing that, for the first time ever, it is offering free shipping on all online purchases—no matter the amount—from Oct. 22 through Dec. 20. The free shipping offer comes early in the holiday shopping timeline, reflecting retailers’ concerns about what is expected to be a highly promotional season.  

By Les Berglass    The appointments of new chief executives of major brands always cause a stir, but Gap Inc.’s recent announcement that Art Peck would succeed Glenn Murphy hit Wall Street like a truck. Why? Because the investment community  wanted a more predictable, standing CEO—it likes stability. But the truth is, this is a positive and revolutionary change.   

Amazon is “piloting” holiday pop-up stores this holiday season, with two confirmed locations in San Francisco and Sacramento, along with what may or may not be a permanent space in Manhattan. While theoretically Amazon is going to let the pilots run their course, analyze the results, and then possibly move forward with a rollout of more permanent brick-and-mortar stores, most observers expect the pilot is the first step in an already determined strategy to build a physical presence.  

Cupertino, Calif. -- Apple announced that its mobile payments solution, Apple Pay, will be launched in the United States on Monday, October 20. CEO Tim Cook made the announcement Thursday at a media event at which he unveiled several new products, including updated versions of the iPad.   

Indianapolis –- Simon malls will feature the Ziploop mobile shopping app during the 2014 holiday season. The app stores paper, cards, coupons and certificates and stores them on a mobile device, tablet or desktop.

 

Fort Worth, Texas -- Starting next week, RadioShack will roll out its initial launch of Apple Pay at more than 900 RadioShack locations in five key markets: Manhattan, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.