Report: Google Is Going Plastic

by Tom Taulli | November 5, 2012 10:57 am

Google (NASDAQ:GOOG[1]) Wallet is an app for the Android platform that can handle a broad array of credit cards, from Visa (NYSE:V[2]) to Discover (NYSE:DFS[3]

) … but it’s not necessarily supported by every merchant, even if those merchants accept said cards.

Now, Google is working on an end-around.

According to a report from Information Week[4], Google is developing its own physical Google Wallet Card to use at places without near-field communication technology.

Even with Google’s enormous resources, it still would take quite a while to get merchants to install new payment systems compatible with the current Google Wallet. Thus, offering a physical card should give the company an opportunity to ramp up transaction volume in the near-term.

However, adoption of a Google Wallet Card might be hindered by the redundancy of using a physical card that’s tied to other physical cards.

Meanwhile, Google also is taking steps to improve the web-based system, including adding the ability to send money via email, make withdraws and deposits to a bank account, and seamlessly use transit cards.

Tom Taulli runs the InvestorPlace blog IPOPlaybook[5], a site dedicated to the hottest news and rumors about initial public offerings. He is also the author of “How to Create the Next Facebook.[6]” Follow him on Twitter at @ttaulli[7]. As of this writing, he did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.

Endnotes:
  1. GOOG: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=GOOG
  2. V: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=V
  3. DFS: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=DFS
  4. report from Information Week: http://www.informationweek.com/development/mobility/google-wallet-gets-real/240012795
  5. IPOPlaybook: https://investorplace.com/ipo-playbook/
  6. How to Create the Next Facebook.: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1430246472/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-3&pf_rd_r=0GRB6ZMCTYDZVNG7Q7NV&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938811&pf_rd_i=507846
  7. @ttaulli: https://twitter.com/ttaulli

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