Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay Versus CurrentC

Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) this year, has been on a successful tide with its launch of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, the iWatch and now of mobile payment through Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay. However, Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) keeps getting thrown into one controversy after another. It started off with the iPhone marketing campaign, that many claimed hid the ugly protruding camera, followed by the delayed release at the Chinese market, the iPhone celebrity hack, iPhone cloud hack in China and now the recent release of Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay. It seems some retailers are hesitant to bring Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay on board.

A recent example that has come to light is drug store chain Rite Aid (NYSE:RAD) Inc. Last week, the retailer stopped taking payments made through Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay. It seems like there is a conflict of interest between Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay and its rival payment alternative CurrentC, which is a product of Merchant Customer Exchange. What makes CurrentC different from Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay is that it doesn’t use a NFC chip, instead it produces a QR code that’s displayed at the check-out terminal. Once the bank accounts are linked with the CurrentC system, a QR code scan is all that is required to complete a transaction.

The Merchant Customer Exchange has been trying to develop a reliable mobile payment since 2011, in order to save customer the 2% to 3% credit card fee of Visa (NYSE:V) and Mastercard. All retailers avoid paying the credit card fee. Former Walmart (NYSE:WMT) CEO, Lee Scott once made a statement that the success of MCX in this domain doesn’t matter to the company.

Due to this reason, Walmart (NYSE:WMT) stores and Best Buy (NYSE:BBY), didn’t get on board with Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay and neither plan to adopt its payment methods in the future. Merchant Customer Exchange has a long list of partners including all major retailers like Target (NYSE:TGT) and Sears Holding (NASDAQ:SHLD,) waiting to introduce its payment methods. Its mobile payment has already hit the market under trial basis and if all works out well, it’s planning to launch it in early 2015. CurrentC is at advantage as compared to Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay, as it can easily be adapted at any check out terminal, whereas Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay requires purchasing new equipment to coordinate with its NFC chip in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Even though, Rite Aid (NYSE:RAD) already has a terminal that supports Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) Pay, their preference to switch to CurrentC is only to support it by backing it up.

But if the demand for the NFC based system rises, it is likely that most companies hesitant to switch will end up making the change. As in these times an attitude like “my way or the high way” won’t get companies very far. They need to cater to customer demand regardless of their liking and preferences. It’s a customer driven era and Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) already has majority of them in its pocket. But the Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) may not enjoy similar response.