The history of point-of-sale systems can be traced back to the early days of commerce, when merchants would keep track of sales using nothing more than a tally board. In the modern day, point-of-sale systems are highly sophisticated and offer businesses a variety of features and benefits. From basic transaction processing to inventory management and customer tracking, point-of-sale systems play an essential role in today’s retail environment. While the features offered by different point-of-sale systems can vary widely, all systems share one common goal: to help businesses run more efficiently and effectively. As the retail landscape continues to evolve, point-of-sale systems will continue to be an invaluable tool for businesses of all types.
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Data for today’s episode is provided by Mercator Advisory Group’s Report: Smart Point-of-Sale Terminals: A Rapid Transformation of Payments Acceptance
Key Events in the Evolution of Point-of-Sale Terminals
- 1879: James Ritty invents the first cash register.
- 1906: First recorded design of a cash register with electric motor.
- 1973-1985: IBM releases the first computer-powered and PC-based POS terminals.
- 1992: The first MS Windows POS system is released.
- 2010: Square releases the world’s first mobile, app-powered POS terminal.
- 2014: Poynt introduces the portable touchscreen POS terminal.
About Report
Mercator Advisory Group’s most recent report, Smart Point-of-Sale Terminals: A Rapid Transformation of Payments Acceptance provides insight into this exciting new technology, and what every merchant needs to know about it.
‘Smart terminals’ is a relatively new term in the payments lexicon, but one that is becoming more widely discussed among merchants of all sizes, types, and categories. The strategy that drives orchestration is nothing less than a paradigm shift in the way that merchants view payment service providers. Rather than conduct due diligence to select a “best-of-breed” service provider for each functional area within payments, orchestration allows merchants of all sizes and scales to offer their customers a smooth shopping experience, be it digital, in-person, or other channels. The growing diversity in payment methods, including contactless and e-wallets, creates an environment where having the right partner is paramount towards achieving your payments and overall business goals. The right payments partner will equip a merchant with the necessary capabilities to operate in this rapidly digitizing business environment, where automation and frictionless experiences are vital in ensuring customer satisfaction and loyalty. Similarly, in order to help merchants provide these services, processors and other payments stakeholders must update their own services and products to keep up with the latest demands of the consumer market and regulatory requirements.
“This is a highly relevant and impactful report,” stated the author of the report, Shreyas Shaktikumar, Senior Analyst in the Merchant Services and Acquiring practice at Mercator Advisory Group. “We are following this trend among a number of similar technology trends that are making payments a frictionless and invisible part of our everyday activities.”
