Mobile payments

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

PNC Financial Services has begun offering a new tool for merchants to accept payments on their mobile devices.

Powa's Asia Pacific strategy took a fortuitous leap when MPayMe became available to acquire, says CEO Dan Wagner.

While there is much attention on mobile payments at the point of sale, several companies are working on mobile payments for commuting, parking and other scenarios where a mobile app could replace a paper ticket or fare card. But it hasn't always been a smooth ride for these new technologies.

BlackBerry has suffered its share of lumps in the payment market, but it has scored an apparent victory in a partnership deal with Canadian mobile payment venture EnStream, which is owned by Bell, Rogers and Telus.

API Software Inc. has created a mobile app for independent sales organizations to help merchants tabulate the best payment services deals.

Zimbabwe-based banking software provider Edgetech Solutions has begun testing EdgePay, a payment system that uses sound waves to provide added security at the point of sale.

Powa Technologies Group is buying Hong Kong-based mobile payments processor MPayMe.

Google has made its Instant Buy API technology compatible with Apple devices.