All The New Places You Can Use Apple Pay

ApIn their continual quest to take over the world — or at least your spending — Apple has expanded Apple Pay to include more banks and businesses. Although the service still accounts for a just a tiny slice of overall transactions, this latest growth reveals that Apple Pay has been much more profitable than similar programs through Google, Verizon, and AT&T.

Starting Tuesday, the company says the service has extended to ten new banks — Associated Bank, BB&T, Black Hills FCU, Commerce Bank, Dupaco Community Credit Union, Idaho Central Credit Union, First Tennessee Bank, TD Bank North America, WesBanco, and UW Credit Union. Additionally, Staples, Winn-Dixie, and Albertsons are now accepting Apple Pay.

Apple hasn't released hard numbers on how the service is faring, but it says it supports the cards that make up 90 percent of credit card purchases, which is up 7 percent from when it launched in October. McDonalds, one of the original merchants to accept payments through Apple Pay, reported that 50 percent of its tap-to-pay transactions in November were through the service. So now it is even easier to make late-night fast food mistakes. The New York Times reported that the epicurean heaven Whole Foods had 150,000 Apple Pay transactions in the program's infancy.

P.S., yes, y'all, you can pay with an Apple Watch, but please don't. For the love of all that is good in humanity, however dwindling that is, please don't.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said that in the first 72 hours Apple Pay registered more than one million cards. And those cards spend big. In late November, a Retale survey showed that Apple Pay users are three times as likely to spend over $250 than with other similar services. Oh, bougie Apple users.

Still, there could be some potential roadblocks to the Apple Pay empire. You know the ads that magically pop on your phone when you're near certain stores? Apple Pay won't allow merchants to do that, which is great for you, but not necessarily attractive to some businesses. This is a particular problem with smaller merchants, who would no longer have access to the cheap marketing tactics. There is also a small start-up cost to the businesses in the machines used to process Apple Pay.

Still, Apple Pay can be very attractive to businesses like new vendor the Amway Center, where the Orlando Magic plays. Alex Martins, chief executive of the Orlando Magic, sees the service as a huge plus for his hordes of basketball fans.

One of the biggest pieces of feedback we get from our fans is that the food and beverage lines are too long. It keeps them from going to the concession stand because they don’t want to miss the action. This, and technologies like Apple Pay, will speed up our service.

Yet again, Apple has found another way to insert itself into your life. Stop resisting, folks.

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