Square nixes gift card program

Reuters reported that mobile payments provider Square Inc. terminated its mobile gift card program less than a year after it was introduced. Square did not issue a statement about the cancellation of the program, but a Square spokesman told the media outlet that the gift cards "were a fun way to send gifts from local businesses to anyone over the holiday season."

Square launched the service in December 2012, with Square Wallet on mobile phones being the focal point from which to send and receive virtual gift cards. At the time, the San Francisco-based company said that, historically, gift card programs are complicated, cumbersome and expensive for businesses to implement.

"Square enables businesses to seamlessly accept gift cards at no additional cost with no additional tools," the company said. "Square Wallet is the easy and fast way to discover nearby businesses, earn rewards and pay with your phone. Customer[s] can pay with Square Wallet at over 200,000 businesses in the U.S., including Starbucks." The Starbucks Coffee Co. operates its own mobile gift card program.

Rocky Agrawal, payment and commerce analyst at reDesign Mobile, told Reuters that the service "wasn't a very well thought-out experience." In its July 10, 2013, newsletter, Newtek Business Services Inc., The Small Business Authority, said of Square's now defunct gift card program: "The move itself is not especially interesting in that it was a niche offering that didn't fit well with the typical retailers that used Square."

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