ChowNow, an online ordering and marketing platform for restaurants, is now integrated with Apple Pay. According to a press release, the company makes apps for restaurants and offers ways for restaurants to take orders from their individual websites and Facebook pages. Now, the company is integrating Apple Pay technology into all of its apps, making it one of the first online ordering platforms to do so. OpenTable has also integrated Apple Pay since the technology launched, but ChowNow enables restaurants that do not take reservations to use Apple's mobile wallet as well.
Customers no longer have to manually input their credit card number and billing address when looking to pay within the restaurants' apps. Those with Apple Pay-compatible devices can simply finish their order by scanning their finger print. The press release notes that because this makes the payment process easier for customers, restaurants should "see increased order volumes, and hence a more profitable to-go business."
Apple launched its mobile payment technology Apple Pay in October. It allows customers with the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, and, eventually, the Apple Watch to have their credit card information stored within a chip on their phones. To pay in stores, customers simply launch Apple Pay and hold the iPhone near a reader while keeping a finger on the Touch ID. To pay online, customers verify their fingerprint when prompted.
Currently, Apple Pay is available at McDonald's, Subway, Panera, and Whole Foods because of a direct partnership between retailers and Apple.