Abu Dhabi launches app to track pupils on journey to school — Arabian Business — “Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) and Emirates Transport have launched Hafilaty, an app that enables parents to track their children to and from school… As part of the initiative, Emirates Transport has installed advanced systems, including GPS tracking systems to locate the bus and NFC technology on students’ cards.”
GPS
Tag Heuer unveils connected watch range with Android Pay
Luxury watchmaker Tag Heuer has unveiled the second generation of its connected watch range, powered by Google’s Android Wear 2.0 operating system and offering host card emulation (HCE) payments through Android Pay... More
Singapore commuters to get NFC-enabled transport payment wearables
Commuters in Singapore will soon be able to pay for public transport using an NFC-enabled fitness tracker or smartwatch linked to their EZ-Link transit card... More
One in 10 UK consumers have used mobile payments, survey reveals
More than one in 10 (11%) of UK consumers have made an in-store mobile payment and do so occasionally, with 2% doing so “wherever possible”, research from price comparison service uSwitch reveals... More
Amazon trials drone delivery system in UK
Online retail giant Amazon has begun trials in the UK of a package delivery system using autonomous drones, which aims to deliver goods to customers within 30 minutes... More
Heineken uses BLE beacons to reward Kiwi consumers
New Zealanders are being rewarded with experiences such as flights, helicopter rides and VIP event access whenever they are close to Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons installed in 120 Heineken locations across the country via the beer maker’s Heineken Live mobile app. More
Nearly half of top marketers plan to invest in NFC in 2016
Close to half (46%) of the top marketers surveyed for a new location-based marketing report say they plan to invest in NFC this year. 41% plan to invest in Bluetooth beacons, 63% in WiFi and 57% in GPS. More
ARM includes AMS NFC payments booster in wearables reference design
PARTNER NEWS: A new reference design for wearables from processor designer ARM includes high-performance NFC technology from AMS that enables small-footprint devices with tiny antennas to couple with NFC readers as easily and reliably as a contactless card... More
Beacons land at UK airports to send out offers and rewards
Eight UK airports are to roll out a network of 200 Bluetooth Low Energy beacons that will deliver notifications such as offers and rewards to passengers while they wait for their flights... More
New Pebble could offer NFC strap
Watch maker Pebble has smashed through a US$500,000 crowdfunding target, raising nearly $16m in a matter of days to produce its new Pebble Time smart watch with a colour display... More
LG smart watch to offer NFC payments
An LTE-equipped variant of LG‘s new luxury smart watch will offer NFC mobile payment functionality, reports Engadget... More
Bluetooth beacons could be just the ticket for UK rail passengers
UK rail passengers could soon have their tickets verified automatically as they walk through fare gates at a station, using a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)-enabled mobile ticketing app due to be built by Bytemark... More
Facebook to test Bluetooth beacons in New York
Facebook has unveiled a new service called Place Tips that works with Bluetooth beacons, WiFi and GPS to show the social network’s iOS app users “useful and relevant” information about the places they visit... More
Starbucks launches Mobile Order & Pay in Portland
Starbucks’ Mobile Order & Pay service is now live in Portland, Oregon ahead of a planned nationwide roll out across the US that will begin in 2015... More
True Mileage uses NFC to cut the cost of usage-based vehicle insurance
Insurance technology startup True Mileage is to begin pilot testing an NFC-enabled vehicle tracking device that “can save providers up to 50% over the cost of other usage-based devices in the industry”... More
Apple patents NFC antenna that works on all sides of a mobile device
Apple has applied for a patent on an antenna design that allows NFC signals to be transmitted from both the top and bottom of a mobile phone — front and rear — reducing the need for a user to orientate their device in a particular way when conducting an NFC transaction. More
NFC onesie gets SXSW outing
A prototype “onesie” jumpsuit has been developed that enables the location of the wearer to be tracked and can communicate using built-in NFC, WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS. More
Dementia patients get NFC help
Taiwan Mobile has introduced an NFC bracelet that can be used to assist the elderly, and in particular those suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, should they get lost... More
Orange Cash goes live in France
Orange Cash, the prepaid NFC payments service announced by Orange and Visa in November 2013, is now live in the French cities of Strasbourg and Caen... More
FC Solution tracks security guards with GPS and NFC
Thailand-based FC Solution has introduced a tracking system that requires security guards to check in to a location by tapping their NFC phone to a tag — and also records the employee’s GPS location to ensure guards can’t cheat the system by removing tags placed around a secured area and putting them in an easier-to-access location... More