March 23, 2012 09:53 am EDT

Western Union debuts WUPay digital platform, misses the point of convenience entirely

Modernization's not for everyone -- just take a look at Western Union. That 19th century institution's finally getting its virtual act together, introducing a new digital payments platform today, dubbed WU Pay, that sadly does not involve laundering dough through the late, great ODB's hip hop clan. No, this forward-facing system, built upon its eBillme acquisition, takes a backwards approach, eschewing direct payment options for something more circuitous. Customers that opt-in for the service at checkout from any number of partnered merchants, like Kmart or Sears, won't have to link to their credit card accounts or even offer up any financial info. Instead, once the item is purchased, they'll receive a bill via email that can then be paid online or at one of the company's brick-and-mortar sites. Sound unnecessary to you? We sure agree. Now if only this innovation involved Marty McFly and Jason Alexander personally delivering those funds -- that's a service overhaul we can get behind. Check out the PR after the break.

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Western Union debuts WUPay digital platform, misses the point of convenience entirely originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Mar 2012 05:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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