Google Adds Chrome Wallet for Payments in Browser Apps

Google is adding a Chrome Wallet App to allow payments within apps that run in Google's Chrome browser.

The wallet app makes the packaged app family function more like Android programs, according to tech news site Engadget.

Chrome’s packaged apps were launched in February. Running inside browsers, the Web apps are usually more interactive than a website but less complicated than a desktop application.

To try Chrome Wallet App, users must run Google Chrome Canary, an "early adopter" version of Google's Chrome browser that allows users and developers to test upcoming features. Users must then install the sample app, “In App Payments” from Github. The app is also available in the Chrome WebStore.

The Chrome Wallet App joins an assortment of payment systems Google has launched, notably Google Wallet, which allows Near Field Communication-based payments at the point of sale.

This month, Google Wallet integrated with Gmail to allow users to send funds as email attachments. Google also added a new checkout button on Android devices for one-click purchases. And Uber, the smartphone app for hailing cabs or scheduling car service, announced its acceptance of Google Wallet as a payment method.

However, Google has also faced setbacks in its payments strategy. Google Wallet met with early security concerns and a revamp of how it works with card issuers. And last week, Google announced that its online alternative payment system, Google Checkout, will shut down for good in November. Google had earlier absorbed Checkout's userbase into the newer Google Wallet.