Google Pay will launch SoundPod with audio alerts for merchants in India after a year-long pilot project

Google is rolling out SoundPod — the company’s wireless speaker that can verify payments received through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) instant payments system — to small merchants in India, the company said on Thursday. The company started testing the device as part of a limited trial last year and revealed that the launch will happen later this year. Google Pay rivals PhonePe and Paytm — the latter facing RBI restrictions for non-compliance with multiple rules — already offer similar products for merchants in the country.

IN blog post on Thursday, Google’s vice president of products for Google Pay, Ambarish Kenge, announced that the company’s SoundPod will be rolled out to small merchants in the country “in the coming months.” During the year-long trial of Google’s SoundPod in India, the firm received positive feedback from merchants participating in the trial, including faster payments, Kenge said.

The SoundPod is equipped with an LCD screen and one speaker. It supports 4G connectivity, according to Google. It has three LED indicators to show the device’s battery, charging and connectivity status and features menu, volume and power buttons.

The SoundPod has an LCD display and speaker that face the merchant
Photo: Google

Paytm’s ‘Soundbox’ speakers offer between four to 12 days of battery life and feature 2G or 4G connectivity — two models are equipped with LCD screens, while another supports music playback over Bluetooth connectivity. On the other hand, PhonePe’s SmartSpeaker offers up to four days of battery life on a single charge and supports multiple languages.

While the company hasn’t offered a specific timeline for the SoundPod’s arrival in India, rivals like Paytm and PhonePe offer similar audio devices that are already being used by merchants across the country. Merchants also pay a monthly subscription — between Rs. 50 to Rs. 125 — to access this audio-based messaging service.

Google says merchants will be able to choose between two SoundPod subscriptions — the Rs. 499 one-time fee followed by Rs. 125 monthly subscription plan or annual subscription at Rs. 1499. Merchants will not have to pay a one-time fee when choosing an annual plan. Customers who receive 400 payments per month through QR codes will get a guaranteed Rs. 125 cashback, according to the company.