Consumers like the idea of controlling their finances from a smartphone or tablet, but the number that are actually using mobile banking services remains low, according to a new survey by RateWatch.

If you're old enough (and I am), you can remember back when incorporating credit card readers into gas pumps was considered the height of convenience. Thank God you no longer needed to make the long journey all the way across the forecourt to pay the cashier! Why, it's exhausting just thinking about it. How did we ever live that way? Well, now we can shave another 15 to 30 seconds off the whole fueling transaction thanks to Chevron, which is working on incorporating Apple Pay into gas pumps at thousands of locations across the country.

The fight for control of hotel-connected airspace is on. The chain Marriott, a hotel trade association, Microsoft and Google are petitioning the FCC over how much control a hotel has over WiFi activity on its premises.

If retailers and e-commerce platforms can do it, forward-thinking city agencies can't be far behind when it comes to new ways of getting you to cough up. This week the New York City Department of Finance released a request for information for vendors about a proposed mobile payments system for parking tickets: a platform that may allow payment with Bitcoin, among other options.

Ever since Apple Pay debuted in October, it seems like everyone and their mother is working on a mobile payment service of their own (seriously, ask your mom about her beta). Now Samsung is preparing to enter the ring, according to Re/Code, which reports that the Korean mobile device maker is in talks with LoopPay, a startup that enables mobile payments at exiting card readers using secure magnetic transmission.

Beginning Dec. 24, Disney World will start accepting mobile contactless payments throughout the theme park. That will enable transactions for park guests who have Apple Pay on their iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus device, as well as Google Wallet and various mobile credit cards using RFID.

With the shutting down of the rebranded GetGlue, we are reminded of two failed mobile models -- and that freedom and power are the real value-adds of mobile, NOT learning new behaviors for the sake of someone else's business model.

Starcom MediaVest Group is moving to integrate location-based data into clients' media campaigns with a new service, SMG Maps. This will be a joint effort with PlaceIQ, as part of a renewed, expanded partnership between the two companies.

f you thought Amazon's introduction of same-day delivery was neat, how about delivery within the hour? That's the e-commerce giant's newest gambit to control every aspect of material existence, enabled by a new Prime Now mobile app that allows you to arrange delivery to your current location.

The number of U.S. households using a mobile device to pay at least one bill per month jumped 70%, from 16 million in 2013 to 27 million in 2014, according to Fiserv, which conducts annual surveys of household financial activities. The latter figure represents about 40% of the total 65 million households that own a smartphone in the U.S, and about 22% of the total 125 million households in the U.S.