PaymentPlan
Latest
Square adds payment installment plans to its merchant tools
It its latest move into the banking industry's turf, Square is now letting its sellers offer payment installment plans. The company says it's easy for a seller to sign up for the feature and customers will be given the option of paying their total over the course of three, six or 12 months. While customers will have to apply for a payment plan, Square will assess and decide on those applications in real time.
Apple online store lets Chinese buy on a two-year plan, puts iPads within reach
Apple has repeatedly stressed that China is important to its bottom line, but it faces a dilemma given the premium associated with its name: when it can take weeks' worth of typical pay to buy an iOS device, let alone a Mac, many locals either have to save up or else turn to alternatives. The company may not have truly low-cost devices -- at least, not yet -- but it is offering an olive branch in the form of installment plans. Chinese who order from the online Apple Store with a China Merchants Bank credit card can now buy virtually anything priced between ¥300 and ¥30,000 ($48 to $4,821) using up to 24 payments spread over two years. Much like in other countries, there's higher additional fees the longer the installments carry on. The strategy only helps a certain segment of the population for whom the up-front cost is the lone obstacle; that may be enough in the near future, though, given that there's still significant demand. [Image credit: Sina Tech]
Digeo offers Moxi DVRs for easy monthly payments
Just in case Moxi's irrefutable mathematics weren't enough to sway you away from a TiVo, there's a new way to pick up on of its HD DVRs - via payment plan. Not to say they've gone all Rent-a-center on us, since both options for breaking down the $799 upfront cost (4 monthly payments of $199.75 or 20 monthly payments of $39.95) are both interest free, but with many buyers looking sideways at big ticket items these days, it could be enough to get customers off of the fence. Our initial impressions of he new hardware are here, and Dave Zatz mentions legal issues will restrict availability of the new pricing initially, but in lieu of actually costing less than a TiVo, is this enough to make you think again?
