UPDATED 07:00 EST / FEBRUARY 12 2015

Square CEO Jack Dorsey NEWS

Square and Google working to catch up to Apple Pay, says report

Square CEO Jack Dorsey Square, Inc., the makers of the mobile-friendly point-of-sale solution popular with small and mid-size business across the U.S., may be working on an Android version of its Square Register.

According to a report from The Information, Square is developing its own Android tablet just in case Apple Inc. pulls support for Square Register from iOS in a bid to force retailers to use Apple Pay exclusively.

Square offers retailers two solutions: Square Register, in the form of an app that delivers a suite of products and is compatible only with Apple’s iPad, and Square Reader, a dongle that attaches to a smartphone, iPhone or Android, and allows for mobile credit card processing.

Square’s Android project is in its infancy and may never see the light of day, says The Information. Hardware design and convincing retailers to switch solutions are both significant stumbling blocks.

The report also mentions a new mobile payments system from Google Inc. currently in a test phase at select retailers. Called “Plaso” – pronounced “play-so”— the system works by letting customers say their initials or name when prompted by the cashier at checkout. Plaso seems to work like the now defunct Square Wallet, which stored payment information in the app and let customers shop by checking in at a shop and then paying by giving a cashier their name at checkout. Square pulled Wallet last year due to poor customer adoption.

It is unclear from the report if Plaso will become a standalone mobile payments system or if Google will incorporate it as a feature into Google Wallet.

Both efforts are ostensibly in response to Apple Pay’s success since its launch last October alongside the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Apple Pay is now accepted on JetBlue flights, accounts for two out of every three dollars spent via contactless payments systems and has seen a slew of banks and credit card companies sign up for its service.

Square revealed plans to begin accepting Apple Pay in November, so it remains to be seen what the company will gain from launching an Android platform that effectively cuts off support for Apple Pay. Google Wallet, on the other hand, has been around much longer than Apple Pay but has been far less successful in terms of adoption, so new features could potentially spur interest among Android users.

Image courtesy Square, Inc.

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