Yesterday, the U.S.
Patent and Trademark Organization published a patent application from Apple for
– wait for it – iMoney. Apple looks to get into the digital currency game in a
way similar to Amazon Coins. The patent is a combination of virtual currency and
digital wallet technology. It allows users to store money in the cloud and make
payments with their iPhone.
Some possibilities
for the patent include making money by viewing ads, where the user will receive
tokens of iMoney that can be applied toward their mobile carrier costs or
redeemed for Apple products and services. There may also be NFC - Near
Field Communication - technology in the mix to communicate with
point-of-sale terminals, which is something Apple has resisted adding to the
iPhone for a long time. NFC allows smartphones to establish radio communication
with each other by touching them together or bringing them in close proximity.
Many people consider
this as Apple trying to nudge into the digital currency arena, after already
refusing to support mobile Bitcoin wallets or apps that allow Bitcoin trading,
causing many Bitcoin enthusiasts and users of alt-currency to switch over to
Android.
Apple’s official
anti-bitcoin policy is infuriating many of its users as the digital currency
continues to become more mainstream. The company actually removed two Bitcoin
wallet applications from its app store in May, prompting Bitpak’s developer,
Rob Sama, to lament, “[It is] extremely unfortunate that Apple has chosen to
take this stand.” Blockchain for iPhone was also deleted from the app store.
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