PayPal is debuting Beacon, a new add-on hardware device for merchants that leverages bluetooth technology to enable consumers to pay at stores completely hands-free.
Essentially it is a small hardware device, that runs on its own WiFi, plugs into an outlet and serves as a ‘beacon’ to other connected devices. Any store running compatible point of sale systems, including Erply, Leaf, Leapset, Micros, NCR, ShopKeep and Vend, will simply plug a PayPal Beacon device in a power outlet in their store, and the device can be integrated. The device itself runs updates on its own, and Granbery says that the merchant doesn’t have to touch it at all. When plugged into an outlet, the device, which takes a triangular shape similar to PayPal Here, lights up. We’re told Yves Behar, who also designed Here, was the brains behind the design of Beacon.
Consumers have to have downloaded the PayPal app, and opted into ability for retailers to use Beacon to use hands-free check-in and payments. Once this is activated, any time a consumer walks into the store the technology will trigger a vibration or sound to confirm a successful check in (this happens in milliseconds), your photo will then appear on the screen of the merchant’s Point-of-Sale system so you can be greeted by name. The app does not have to open on the consumer’s smartphone. You order or pay for your goods, and paying only requires a verbal confirmation, and the checkout is complete. A receipt will be emailed to the consumer.
PayPal also warns that it is aware of the potential privacy issues so PayPal Beacon won’t constantly track your location unlike other technologies. If you enter a store and decline to check in, or just ignore the prompt entirely, no information is transmitted to PayPal or the merchant. PayPal has also said that there will be no ads served via the platform.
The broader vision for Beacon is to have an open platform from which merchants can create compelling, friction-less experiences for their consumers. As part of the announcement today, PayPal is giving developers access to the PayPal mobile in-store API. So for example, a drugstore could populate your prescriptions as you walk into the store so you could automatically pay for your bill without having to swipe a card. Or you could automatically add your name to a wait list for tables at a restaurant by walking in.