Fast-forward into our ideal mobile payment future. Standardized contactless terminals stand on every checkout counter, ready to transact securely with any device. However, once mobile wallets cross the adoption hurdle, they can’t be content to rest. There are essential steps the technology will have to take to ensure its hard-won users don’t rethink the decision to go mobile.

Bango, a payment technology company in the U.K., has released its direct operator billing system to some digital merchants.

Shortly after Apple Inc. announced it would open the iPhone's TouchID fingerprint authentication system to third-party developers, Nok Nok Labs began working to integrate it into a product embraced by the Fast IDentity Alliance.

The payment capabilities in the new Fire Phone are just the latest in a series of products that only Amazon could pull off. The e-commerce giant's offerings range from basic services to its own digital currency.

EBay Inc. Chief Executive Officer John Donahoe will join Nike Inc.'s board, bringing e-commerce experience to a company that's increasingly looking for ways to use the Internet to boost sales.

Vend will integrate its payment system with QuickBooks Online, making it the second point of sale company this week (along with Flint) to tout a link to Intuit's accounting software.

Clover Network Inc., a subsidiary of First Data Corp. has partnered with DropThought to add instant consumer and employee feedback to Clover Station, a tablet-based point of sale.

Flint is integrating its iOS and Android small business payment apps with Intuit's QuickBooks Online accounting software, a move meant to enable clients to better manage the data connected to their transactions.

Despite a name that makes it sound like a droid from "Star Wars," 2C2P has grown to be a serious contender in Southeast Asia's burgeoning alternative payments market.

Digital coupon company Savor has extended the reach of its mobile shopping app, and plans to add Bluetooth beacons and card-linked offers to bring deals to consumers while they are in a store.

Amazon.com Inc.'s Fire Phone, unveiled today, has a button that blends mobile purchasing with real-world shopping.

To move the U.S. toward a faster electronic payments system, it may be necessary to design a completely new payments infrastructure.

Dwolla, an alternative payments provider, has launched a service that allows customers to send money to a business without having to enter bank account information.

Xpress Money has partnered with Kenya's Safaricom Ltd. to offer money transfer services through the M-Pesa mobile money platform.

Global Payments, an Atlanta-based payment processor, has signed a deal with Bigcommerce, an e-commerce software firm, to provide its merchants with online shopping sites.

Seamless' mobile payments system is currently available in only a few countries, but the Swedish company has its eyes set on quickly adding bigger markets.

VeriFone is introducing its sound-based mobile app for proximity payments, Way2ride, to taxi passengers in Philadelphia.

SCVNGR's LevelUp has seen a sharp rise in spending at merchants that use iBeacon, Apple's version of a Bluetooth Low Energy system for detecting consumers and providing location-based offers.

Chick-Fil-A has joined a growing number of quick-service franchises that are testing or deploying a mobile payment app for customers.

Swedish mobile payments provider Seamless has entered a distribution deal with retail tech provider PCMS Group.