Google, during Google I/O 2022, has announced launching Google Wallet with its next Android update. It is live since the 21st of July 2022. At the moment, the launch covers 42 countries and will gradually be expanded to other countries.
Google Pay and Google Wallet
Impacts for Marketers
Impacts for Wallet users
In a few words
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Google Pay and Google Wallet
Google Pay is a payment app installed by default on most Android devices. It is using the NFC technology to allow payment with a smartphone, via a digital card. It is also used to dematerialize loyalty cards, events tickets and transportation passes.
Splio Mobile Wallets is using Google Pay, alongside Apple Wallet, to integrate “Passes” into your customers' mobiles and turn them into a new digital touchpoint, without having to install an app. To know more about this topic, please read our introduction article.
With the last Android update, Google has rebranded Google Pay as Google Wallet, giving it a wider functional scope: digitalizing all the items contained in the customer's wallet. In addition to event and boarding passes, and loyalty cards, Google Wallet allows users to include their vaccine passes, car keys and even their official documents.
Here is the official video presenting its main features:
We can expect a wider adoption of Wallets by Android users in the long run, for two reasons:
- since more types of cards and passes can be added to Google Wallet, it will push more people to use the app.
- since it is no longer named Google Pay, it will avoid the confusion with a payment app. For example, users who were reluctant to use phone payment systems may now use Google Wallet for other purposes.
Impacts for Marketers
The transformation of Google Pay into Google Wallet will have no major impacts on the way you use Mobile Wallets.
The only thing that changes is the badge you need to use for the Pass distribution:
In July 2022 we have updated our Smart Badge to adapt the user flow. If you want to integrate it, please refer to our dedicated article.
Impacts for Wallet users
For Wallet users, here are the changes that are occurring with the last Android update:
- All Google Pay users have seen their app transformed into Google Wallet on the date of the release.
- All their previous passes loaded in Google Pay are transferred to Google Wallet and still work as they used to. This switch is seamless and transparent for users.
- There is no significant change in the user experience, from the journey to add the pass to the navigation in the Wallet itself.
In a few words
The switch from Google Pay to Google Wallet is bringing no major change in the usage of Android passes, but implies a stronger convergence between Mobile Wallet apps. We can expect an increasing worldwide adoption because of the multiplicity of use cases now covered and new features in the months to come!