Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) announced Wednesday a Wallet Service that can be used to send people money via email. The new Google Wallet service will be available to all U.S. residents who are over 18 years of age and use Gmail; also they should have registered their bank account with the service.
Using the service is easy. Users just have to click the ‘$’ button above the content box, fill in the amount and other details, and that’s it. Currently, the new service has been launched for the desktop version of Gmail, so mobile users will have to wait and keep using the earlier version of Wallet.
“Google Wallet is now integrated with Gmail, so you can quickly and securely send money to friends and family directly within Gmail — even if they don’t have a Gmail address,” Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) writes in a blog post. There are no charges for the new service if a bank account is linked with Google Wallet or a user is using his or her Google Wallet balance. “Low fees apply to send money using your linked credit or debit card,” says the blog post. The new Google Wallet service will also allow sending money to friends and family who do not have a Gmail account.
The new service from the online retailer will be in direct competition with other online payment solutions like PayPal and Dwolla.
Perfectly Safe
Peter Hazlehurst, director of product management for Google Wallet says that sending money via Gmail is safe, as the company offers a Google Wallet Purchase Protection plan that covers 100 percent against eligible unauthorized payments. He further said that there is no need to worry about security issues as no actual account information is transferred via e-mail.
Other Announcements
Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) also introduced an ‘Instant Buy’ API that will allow users to purchase items from an app or online store with just a few clicks. Another announcement made by Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) during the Google I/O developer conference is regarding ‘Google Wallet Objects API’. This will allow Google Wallet users to include any loyalty card in their Google Wallet.
