Verizon offering Intuit's GoPayment reader for free
Intuit's mobile credit card reader, aimed at small to midsize businesses, is free after a $30 rebate and the activation of a GoPayment account.
Verizon is now selling Intuit's GoPayment credit card reader for free at its retail stores.
Thanks to a new partnership between Verizon Wireless and Intuit, business customers can get the mobile card reader for free after a $30 rebate and the activation of a GoPayment account. The card reader and its app can be found at all of Verizon's retail stores and as well as its business-to-business outlets.
Intuit's GoPayment system is geared toward small and midsize businesses that need to process credit cards on the go. The reader itself plugs into a smartphone or tablet. After customers swipe their credit or debit card through the reader, the payment is processed automatically and the funds sent to the merchant's bank account within a few days.
Both the app and the basic, or low-volume plan, are free. Intuit charges a rate of 2.7 percent for each swiped card transaction. Keying in a card manually kicks in a higher fee of 3.7 percent.
A high-volume plan carries a price tag of $12.95 per month with a rate of 1.7 percent for each swiped transaction. But Intuit is currently offering Verizon customers two months free if they opt for the high-volume plan.
Business owners who use a smartphone with the GoPayment reader need to subscribe to Verizon's Wireless Nationwide Talk plan starting at $39.99 a month. Tablet and smartphone users must also pony up for the standard data plan, which starts at $30 a month for 2 gigabytes of data.
GoPayment is currently compatible with Apple iOS, Android, and BlackBerry devices.
Debuting in 2009, GoPayment has been squaring off against Square, another mobile-payment app and card reader. Launched by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, Square recently said that it's now processing $4 million a day in mobile payments. Square offers its card reader for free at Apple stores, both online and at retail outlets.
To lure in more business customers, Intuit had also offered its card reader for free earlier this year.
Correction, 9:05 a.m. PT: This story initially misstated the rate charged for keying in a card manually on the basic plan. It is 3.7 percent.