When PayPal begins distributing the EMV-chip card version of its PayPal Here mobile card reader in the U.K. this year, it will follow a pattern the eBay unit established in the U.S. of targeting a narrower market than its rivals do.
Whereas rivals such as
"For businesses of a larger size, we already have a point of sale system in place, we don't think that these businesses should be ripping [out] and replacing point of sale systems in favor of mobile acceptance," says Anuj Nayar, director of global communications for PayPal. "We consider mobile acceptance for the [smaller end] of the business spectrum."
PayPal Here plans to launch chip-and-PIN version of the PayPal Here mobile card reader in the U.K.in the summer.
Rival Payleven says certain features, such as software that lets a single account manage multiple card readers, make its product a good fit for larger companies. PayPal, which offers a similar feature, says it is just as good a fit for smaller merchants.
"Multiple readers can attach to the same PayPal account," Nayar says. "Executives can track users and see who is doing what and how they are performing."
For companies slightly larger than independent contractors, PayPal recently debuted a
"We are working with the infrastructure the merchants already have," Nayar says. "Whether it's a larger company like NCR or a smaller vendor, we want to work with their existing tech."
