A new Google Play Services update brings with it what seems to be the first traces of Google Pay branding. This specifically relates to the beta version of Play Services and therefore device owners who are not part of the beta program are unlikely to see the latest change for now.
For those who are part of the program, however, heading through to the device’s settings and through to the ‘Tap and Pay’ section will reveal the new Google Pay logo and wording in replace of what was previously listed as Android Pay. To access on a Pixel 2 for example – head to Settings, then to Apps & Notifications, then Advanced, Default Apps, and then finally Tap & Pay. Google Pay will already likely be listed as the default payment option on this settings page (shown below) and clicking on Payment default will further expand on the branding (shown above). Of course, this does not result in any specific change to the functionality of the default payment, it is just a change of branding.
For those new to Google Pay, this was introduced by Google a little earlier in the week. Like what is now being seen in the settings, Google Pay is not a new feature but instead represents the new branding which encompasses everything payment-related through Google. Therefore whether a device owner uses Android Pay to make payments in a store, or Google Wallet to send money to friends and family, over the coming weeks and months, these services (as well as other Google services that accept payments – the Play Store for instance) will be updated to reflect the new Google Pay branding. Again, nothing functionally is changing here, and all services, features, and apps will continue to work exactly as they did before. It is just the branding that is changing. For those wondering, the beta version of Google Play Services needs to be at v11.9.73 for the change to be seen. Anyone not part of the beta can sign up for the beta by heading to the Google Play Store Play Services page where the ‘join the beta’ option will be listed. In either case, it will likely make its way out to the non-beta version in due course along with the rest of the relevant apps that will need to be updated to complete the branding change.