PayPal is introducing new developer tools that will help enable mobile payments, and, in the process of doing so, is issuing a mea culpa on the outdated nature of their earlier APIs.
From a VentureBeat article:
“It was confusing and cumbersome for developers to tie in [to the old APIs],” PayPal chief technology officer James Barrese told VentureBeat. “Our new API is a REST model, so it’s a very simple and intuitive way for an engineer to integrate with us. Over the years, PayPal [has] introduced different APIs to devs; now we have a chance to look and see what they really need.”
The new tools include a mobile SDK, which provides the ability to add Card.io card scanning technology into any app, and new JavaScript PayPal buttons, which only require five lines of code to integrate PayPal into a mobile site. The APIs will also be able to tokenize card numbers, reducing developers’ need to worry about PCI compliance. PayPal intends to continue releasing APIs throughout the year in an attempt to continue building its services.
Recently, PayPal has placed an overwhelming amount of emphasis on getting PayPal payments accepted by brick-and-mortar retailers, including the mobile phone number and PIN solution used by retailers such as Home Depot and the partnership with Discover to issue a plastic PayPal card. One important message to take away from this announcement is that PayPal has not forgotten about its value as an e-commerce and m-commerce solution. PayPal is clearly committed to continuing development of its online payments product, and does not appear to be resting on its laurels in that space.
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