Google share price: Company partners with US mobile carriers to bolster Wallet

Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL), the world’s largest online search company, is joining forces with three major US mobile carriers in a move to expand the reach of its Google Wallet mobile payment system. The company announced the move yesterday, in a blog post on its website:

“We’re excited to announce that we’re working with AT&T Mobility, T-Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless, as well as their mobile payments company Softcard, to help more Android users get the benefits of tap and pay,” the Internet giant said.“Under this relationship, the Google Wallet app, including the tap and pay functionality, will come pre-installed on Android phones (running KitKat or higher) sold by these carriers in the US later this year.”

As part of the deal, Google acquired Softcard’s technology and intellectual property, “to make Google Wallet better”.
Google’s mobile payment service, which uses near-field communication (NFC) technology, was introduced in 2011, but didn’t take off in a big way as it met significant resistance from mobile operators. Most carriers refused to preload the Wallet app on their Android phones and blocked the service from accessing smartphones’ NFC chip since they were planning their own payments service.

Meanwhile, Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) last year launched its own NFC-based mobile payment system called Apple Pay. The service has enjoyed early success, encouraging consumers to start using their smartphones to make payments in stores. According to Apple chief executive officer Tim Cook, Apple Pay accounted for $2 of every $3 spent using contact-less payments on the largest payment networks.
The popularity of Apple Pay makes it important for Google to boost its own mobile payment service in order to keep up with its chief rival in smartphones. At the same time, the mobile carriers have a bigger incentive to work with Google because they get no revenue from Apple Pay, according to unnamed sources cited by The Wall Street Journal.
In yesterday’s trading, Google shares closed down 1.3 percent at $535.00, trimming their year-to-date advance to 0.8 percent. The company’s market capitalisation currently stands at $368.2 billion.
According to CNNMoney, the 40 analysts offering 12-month price forecasts for Google have a median target of $625.00, with a high estimate of $700.00 and a low estimate of $530.00.The current consensus among 47 polled investment analysts is to purchase equity in the company, the website notes.
As of 14:29 GMT, Tuesday, 24 February, Google share price is $534.96.