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Popular online payment method PayPal is removing their mobile app from various operating systems. Windows Phone, Amazon, and BlackBerry will no longer be supported as of June 30, 2016.
It is not a complete surprise to see PayPal pull their apps from various platforms, albeit it is a brash decision. Windows Phone and BlackBerry have never been a big mobile market for PayPal, though. However, abandoning Amazon’s Fire OS – a fork of Android – is quite a surprise, considering the popularity of the Kindle Fire tablets.
PayPal Can Easily Take Financial Tools Away
As one would come to expect from this company, there is not much of an official statement regarding this news. The company did mention how these apps will no longer be supported as of June 30, 2016. PayPal also feels this decision will lead to better apps on iOS and Android as developers can now focus on those platforms.
The PayPal blog post states the following:
“We remain committed to partnering with mobile device providers, and we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause our customers,” Lambert said. PayPal claims that putting a sharper focus on just the two apps will allow the company to “innovate and make enhancements to PayPal’s mobile experiences to give our customers the best possible ways to manage and move their money.”
One thing to keep in mind is how users on these platforms can still use the Paypal mobile website. BlackBerry users will still be able to send PayPal payments through BBM as well. Plus, Outlook.com users can turn on the PayPal add-in to send funds straight from the email application on Windows Phone. All in all, the company is not dropping support for these platforms entirely, but only the mobile apps.
Bitcoin Remains Superior Due To Global Availability
The move by PayPal goes to show how centralized payment giants can take away the power from consumers and businesses in a heartbeat. Although they do not drop platform support entirely, users are given one less convenient option to send and receive money. This creates exciting opportunities for Bitcoin wallet developers.
Now that these three mobile operating systems are lacking proper financial applications, Bitcoin can start to take over. With only one wallet available for Windows Phone and Blackberry, the offerings need to be expanded soon. Fire OS users have a few more options at their disposal, but more competition is always welcome.
Even though Blackberry, Fire OS, and Windows Phone are not the most popular operating systems, they all have dedicated users. All of these users deserve access to financial freedom, which is exactly what Bitcoin provides. Developers should take note of this opportunity, and explore the options presented to them.
Source: The Verge
Header image courtesy of NewsBTC
