This is interesting for retail and financial:
http://www.finextra.com/news/fullstory.aspx?newsitemid=23981
It's similar to Tesco Korea's and Woolworth Australia's virtual stores but allows the purchase to be made with PayPal, circumventing the bank.
(And Tesco have a new virtual store at Gatwick Airport so holidaymakers don't come home to an empty fridge.)
[Another colleague] also had a bank-bypassing shopping experience in Sydney with the Apple Store app whereby she was able to scan, pay and get an e-receipt for a product in the store via her iTunes account. No bank or SCO [Self Check Out] involved.
The August 2012 RFi report said: Of all challengers, it is RFi’s view that PayPal represents the biggest potential disruptor. According to RFi’s data around 60% of Australian consumers have used PayPal in the last three months. Yet, it is in the offline space where the threat from PayPal is now greatest. PayPal has indicated it has entered into talks with major Australian retailers about becoming a means of payment at the point of sale. Once available, customers will be able to pay from their PayPal account, thereby bypassing the traditional payment networks and cutting the traditional beneficiaries from the transaction. One might think the banks and card schemes would not let this happen. Yet, the pressure the Australian retail sector is currently facing suggests over coming years retailers will continue to reshape their businesses and the way their customers pay. PayPal has the potential to be the big winner from this.
