NFC Forum partners with GlobalPlatform on NFC standards

The partnership will see the organisation responsible for setting core NFC functionality standards working with the association which handles secure element specifications to support the development of internationally interoperable, multi-application NFC solutions.

NFC Forum and GlobalPlatform
WORKING TOGETHER: GlobalPlatform and the NFC Forum have signed an MoU

The NFC Forum, the trade association responsible for setting core NFC functionality standards, and GlobalPlatform, which sets standards for the management of applications on secure chips such as NFC secure elements, have agreed to work together to harmonize their NFC specification activities.

The two associations have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the aim of supporting the development of interoperable, multi-application NFC-based mobile solutions and to support the NFC Forum’s certification activities.

“To accelerate the deployment of new mass market NFC-based use cases, the NFC community and wider mobile services sector must establish neutral, sustainable and scalable infrastructures that support secure communication between all stakeholders and technology platforms,” says the partners.

“This new, formal partnership will open up opportunities for innovative solutions across multiple industries by leveraging the NFC Forum’s deep technical knowledge and extensive library of NFC-based standards and GlobalPlatform specifications for managing contactless services which serve multiple actors and support several business models.”

“With the creation of the trusted execution environment and the growth of secure element enabled NFC phones in the market, the wider chip-based industry now needs harmonized specifications to speed up new NFC-based use cases, including peer-to-peer transactions and card reading functionalities,” says Gil Bernabeu, technical director of GlobalPlatform.

“This MoU will not only facilitate the establishment of a complete and workable ecosystem, it will also provide the industry with clear direction regarding technical requirements so that hardware such as the secure element can be easily integrated into mobile devices,” he explains. “We look forward to working with the NFC Forum to develop a complete framework that supports secure communication between all stakeholders implementing and managing contactless services.”

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