That odor is the smell of chum in the corporate waters, as law firm Schubert Jonckheer & Kolbe LLP announced Friday that it was launching an "investigation" into Rite Aid and CVS's decision to block Apple Pay and Google Wallet. The firm said it was considering a class action lawsuit against the pharmacy chains based on antitrust law.
"The firm is currently considering a potential class action to restore Apple Pay service at CVS and Rite Aid stores and would like to hear from consumers affected by the pharmacies' decision," Schubert Jonckheer & Kolbe LLP said in a statement. "CVS and Rite Aid have long allowed contactless payments at their retail stores, but less than one week after Apple, Inc. deployed Apple Pay, the large retail pharmacy chains disabled those system to prohibit the payment method."
The announcement goes on to note that mainstream reports said the two retail chains blocked Apple Pay and Google Wallet because of the chains' membership in Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX) and its rival payment system CurrentC.
"Unlike Apple Pay [...] CurrentC has serious drawbacks for consumers," the firm said. "Most importantly, the system doesn't allow credit cards. Accordingly to security experts, it is also less secure than Apple's service and could put consumer financial information at risk."
The attorneys are asking owners of Apple's iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, or an Android owner with Google Wallet, to contact them if they have tried or would like to try to pay using those systems at Rite Aid and CVS. You can check out the press release for the details.