The mobile operator has put together a combined NFC handset/NFC tag package for customers that uses the tags to access WAP pages, including an option to buy ÖBB rail tickets. More
- Germany to develop state-run European digital identity wallet
- Coach and Poshmark leverage NFC for sustainable product resales
- Ski jumpers to be required to have NFC jump suits
- Google Wallet to add support for digital passports
- Apple turns on support for Tap to Cash NFC peer-to-peer mobile payments
Cubic to offer NFC upgrade capability to major transit systems
Transit ticketing supplier Cubic has partnered with Vivotech to offer its customers, who include the transit operators for London, Washington and New York/New Jersey, the ability to upgrade their ticketing systems to accept payment via contactless cards and NFC phones. More
Cell Idea adds NFC to any Bluetooth phone
UPDATED Consumers can simply pair the company’s new ‘With Me’ device, expected to retail at US$25, with their existing Bluetooth phone in order to NFC-enable their handset. More
Fonelabs launches range of low-cost NFC phones
The firm’s X-Series handsets incorporate an NFC chip and internal antenna plus an optional MicroSD-based secure element from Cell Idea. They are fully Mifare compatible and are expected to start at under US$100 in volume. More
Telefónica and Sermepa launch NFC pilot in Spain
The mobile operator and the bank-owned transaction processing supplier are testing a Mobile Virtual Wallet with potential applications in payments, transport, healthcare and personal identification. More
Keep up to date: Get NFCW's headlines by email every Wednesday
Vivotech awarded key OTA provisioning patent, wins new funding
The contactless and NFC infrastructure specialist has been granted a broad patent covering the over-the-air provisioning of payments cards, loyalty cards and other non-payments cards to NFC phones — and has also secured an extra US$8.6m in funding. More
NXP transfers its mobile services business to Gemalto
NXP and Gemalto have signed a deal that will see Gemalto taking over NXP’s mobile services business unit in Sophia Antipolis. More
Orange and Barclaycard partner to launch NFC in the UK
All customers are expected to be able to use their phones to pay for everyday items within three years in “the biggest revolution in payments since plastic cards were introduced over 40 years ago.” More
Inside and Gemalto offer NFC solution for handset makers
The new product offering uses the Single Wire Protocol to securely link a Gemalto SIM card with an embedded secure element from Inside Contactless. More
Gemalto and Oberthur developing Mifare on a SIM
Both suppliers have announced they are close to adding Mifare functionality to their SIM cards. More
Handsets and ecosystems — major breakthroughs for NFC
OPINION: The last two weeks have seen two major breakthroughs for NFC. First, Singapore has become the first country to get all the key players to sign up for the creation of a fully inter-operable, multi-application national NFC ecosystem. More
Singapore to get national trusted third party for NFC
Singapore’s banks, telecoms networks and transit operators have given the go ahead for the creation of a national trusted third party designed to ensure full interoperability between the NFC services of all mobile operators and all service providers. More
Keep up to date: Get NFCW's headlines by email every Wednesday
Convenience will drive UK adoption of mobile and contactless payments
More than 40% of British consumers say they would use their phone to make payments — and ease of use would be their main reason for doing so. More
The NFCW Jobs Board: Latest vacancies
New opportunities this week include an internship opportunity at Motorola’s Future Experience Lab and a contract position at Consult Hyperion for a healthcare specialist… More
Citi searches for a business model in Bangalore
Citigroup says it is to run an NFC trial in the Indian city of Bangalore, with the aim of developing a business case that it can present to carriers back in the US. More
Telefónica O2 to launch multi-function NFC trial in Czech Republic
The Czech town of Pilsen is to be the site of the world’s first trial of a multi-function NFC system incorporating both retail payments and Mifare transit ticketing applications. More
Australia’s first NFC trial hailed a success
Telstra, National Australia Bank and Visa say participants in a three month trial in Melbourne have given the thumbs up to the technology and the companies will now continue to work towards a commercial NFC launch. More
Would-be SIM suppliers line up to battle for operators’ NFC business
OPINION: For anyone hoping to be seen as a player in the NFC SIM market, it’s becoming clear that now is the time to let the market know you’re in the game — even if you don’t yet have any product ready to ship. More
Sony/NXP joint venture announces ‘universal NFC chip’
Moversa’s new U-SAM chip enables multiple contactless technologies to be supported on one mobile phone, raising the possibility that consumers could soon be using their NFC handsets for everything from Mifare metro tickets and Japanese Osaifu-Keitai electronic wallet functions to Visa and MasterCard contactless transactions. More
Japanese financial services giant tests Mobile MasterCard in Tokyo
Orico says it has been working with Gemalto and with Japanese mobile operator KDDI on a small-scale technical test of a MasterCard PayPass-compatible NFC service. More