Slurpee heaven just got a little easier.
You can now use Apple Pay and Google Pay to satisfy your Slurpee craving.
The mobile payment systems, which typically run through your phone or smartwatch, have begun being accepted at 7-Eleven stores across the US, the convenience store giant announced Monday. Support for the contactless payments systems is rolling out gradually through September, joining the Samsung Pay mobile payments option, 7-Eleven said in a statement.
“Frictionless experiences are the future, and digital payments are key to such experiences,” Gurmeet Singh, CDO and CIO of 7-Eleven, said in a statement. “Consumers prefer shopping at retailers that offer digital payment capabilities.”
While many 7-Eleven shoppers will likely welcome the news, the expansion of the payments systems’ footprint to the convenience store chain’s shoppers is also good news for Apple and Google. As smartphone sales stagnate, the services sector is seen as a crucial growth area.
7-Eleven marks the latest retailer to embrace the rival mobile payments platforms to pay for goods and services, which the tech giants see as a critical step to getting more people entrenched in their respective ecosystems of devices, apps and other services, making it tougher to switch to a competitor.
Big-box retailer Costco said last month it had begun accepting Apple Pay at all of its 750 warehouse stores in the US, joining Google Pay and Samsung Pay.
An Apple representative referred a request for comment to Apple CEO Tim Cook’s remarks during an earnings call in July. “We’re excited to share that in the US, eBay is beginning to enable its sellers to accept Apple Pay and CVS Pharmacy and 7-Eleven will roll out Apple Pay acceptance in locations nationwide this fall,” Cook said.
Google didn’t respond to a request for comment.
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