PayPal to rival TextPayMe for SMS payments?

We ran TextPayMe by you last year, a service that allows you to make PayPal-like payments over SMS. Well now it looks like PayPal is hoping to make those SMS payments a little more PayPal-like, since they're advertising for a business manager and senior product manager for their "PayPal Mobile" group, "a new mobile payments 'start-up' unit" in the company. So it looks like we might have some friendly competition in the mobile payment space sooner rather than later, which sounds fine by us.

[Via textually.org]

[TroyG @ Feb 3rd 2006 2:24PM]

Does anyone else find this ironic considering PayPal STARTED as a mobile (although not "wireless") service for people to exchange money on-the-go using "Palm Pilots" (before they became just Palm's)???

[Mike @ Feb 3rd 2006 2:42PM]

Early on, before the eBay buyout, they were all about being e-money. At some point they launched a WAP site, but it's long since fallen into disrepair, a victim of unsupported back-end updates and neglect.

I like buying things on ebay that are close enough to pick up in person. Being able to send paypal payments from my cell phone was great, while it lasted.

[Mark @ Feb 3rd 2006 5:03PM]

#1, I remember. I wish they would bring that back.

[Kyle @ Feb 4th 2006 2:08PM]

It will be interesting to see if the mobile operators are willing to work with them, considering Paypal's parent company (ebay) owns Skype. Skype's mission is to take minutes away from mobile operators!

[Sandra Oh Lin @ Feb 10th 2006 7:11PM]

I work on this project for Paypal and have been in NYC all week meeting with potential merchant partners for our Q2 rollout.

[Anon @ Feb 10th 2006 11:13PM]

Sandra Oh Lin - I don't believe you. A company employee would not disclose that. Do you have proof?

[Deirdre Hancock @ Mar 23rd 2006 3:48AM]

Too little too late Paypal, this technology is painfully outdated compared to what is ahead.

I�ve been beta testing a mobile money solution for a few weeks now from a startup called Obopay, and from what I�ve seen it�s a much smarter solution than what TextPayMe offers, or even what Paypal is offering here.

It�s really all about creating a robust, simple to use solution, and using text messages for mobile payments is not it. The Obopay service I�ve been using has its own little java app that has simple menu commands like �Pay�, �Request Pay� and �Check Balance� �See History� which creates a nice streamlined interface from which to send money around. The difference is like using a Windows or a Macintosh vs. DOS or a Command Line Interface. Having an application makes all of the difference in easy of use and utility.

Combined with a linked debit card I can spend the money in my Obopay account anywhere that MasterCard is accepted, or take money from any ATM instally, as soon as someone sends me money. Also, the Obopay mobile application is perfect for someone like me who often sends medium sized increments of money around to people like my friends and family, but doesn�t require me to use an ATM or hassle with carrying around cash. It�s a lot like the Paypal web service, except you can access it anywhere you are and it doesn�t have any of the clutter, it�s just a simple pay and be paid service for my cell phone.

I�ve already used this service to loan money to my mother-in-law (who is also a beta tester) as well as let my boyfriend pay the check at restaurants while I send him the exact amount for my half of the bill. I can really see this sort of thing revolutionizing the way I handle money, especially if enough people get onboard.

I think that mobile payment services like Obopay�s have a lot of potential to replace a good chunk transactions involving cash. At the very least it�s going to put companies like Western Union out of business (who the heck wants to send money for a ridiculous fee from fixed locations when they can do it from their cell phones for practically nothing?), but I also think it�s going to replace the vast majority of cash transactions since the cell phone is such a ubiquitous platform; literally everyone and their grandmother has a cell phone which is all you need to send/receive money instantly.

Looking ahead, I�m glad I�ll have my Obo phone with me when I go to Europe in a month since I won�t need to freak out about getting emergency cash if I need it, I can just get my parents to send me money and I�ll have it in my account seconds later.

[Abe Burnett @ Apr 10th 2006 5:20PM]

Deirdre, I think you're wrong about Obopay versus Textpayme being like a windowed interface versus command-line. The whole reason Textpayme went with text messaging as the way for people to pay one another is that it's extremely familiar. In our world of high speed tech familiarity is much more important in winning over users then the BEST technical solution. It's like Betamax versus VHS; the BEST way to do something doesn't always (or even frequently) win. Even myself as an advanced user of most tech finds it annoying to have to download and install apps on my cell. True, text messaging is by no means perfect either, but it's a heck of a lot more convenient and ultimately usable then an entirely separate app. Just my two cents.

[kristine joy @ Dec 3rd 2007 7:58AM]

will somebody tell me if its still possible for me to pay my phone bill via paypal? i'm here @ U.A.E. thanks!!!

[jtfy8rytjfghfkj @ May 19th 2009 6:44AM]

PayPal is an e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. PayPal serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper methods such as checks and money orders. Since everyone are suffering recession even the other companies and businesses who are capable for transaction of money transfers falls during recession. Everybody’s aware of the statistics of the country’s economy which is called to be the economic indicator that shows the analysis of economic performance and predictions of future performance.