Guess, Mondaine, Timex, Kronaby, Suunto, Adexe and LBS have all signed deals with Barclaycard to embed the card issuer’s bPay wearable payments technology “in a variety of timepieces, sports trackers and watch straps.”... More
Google Pay on Wear OS officially spreads to three new countries — Android Police — “In addition to using NFC-equipped watches to make regular mobile payments, users in Australia can use their Wear OS devices with the Opal ticketing system to pay for single-trip tickets on select rail and ferry lines… Formerly, Google’s payment service was only supported on Android Wear (now Wear OS) devices in the US and the UK.”
Fitbit introduces Fitbit Versa, the smartwatch for all — Fitbit — “Leave your wallet at home and easily pay in any store where contactless payments are accepted… Now available with Fitbit Pay on Fitbit Versa Special Edition products; supported by nearly 40 banks in 14 countries, through eligible US American Express, Mastercard and Visa cards, with more countries and banks rolling out in 2018.”
Over 175 million Europeans ready to pay with wearable devices — Mastercard — “Overwhelming success of contactless cards peaks shopper demand for wearable payments… One quarter (24%) of Europeans expect to start using ‘tap and go’ contactless payments with a smartwatch, bracelet, keyring or other forms of wearable payments.”
Samsung Pay now available for Commonwealth Bank customers — Commonwealth Bank of Australia — “Commonwealth Bank customers will now have access to Samsung’s contactless payments platform, Samsung Pay… Today’s announcement follows CBA’s partnership with Google in November to offer Android Pay on compatible devices at almost 800,000 stores across Australia. CBA customers have also been able to make payments on the go with Fitbit and Garmin’s new payment-enabled smartwatches.”
UnionPay International and Huawei sign global cooperation agreement — UnionPay International — “Next, UnionPay International and Huawei plan to launch Huawei Pay in more markets along the Belt and Road, especially in the Eastern Europe… Huawei Pay now supports the bank cards issued by 66 issuers and is available with 20 terminal devices including mobile phones and watches… In 2017, the transaction volume via Huawei Pay exceeded RMB4bn (US$632m).”
Samsung’s patent shows authenticating users by measuring their blood flow patterns — SamMobile — “The patent describes a method to identify users based on blood flow patterns in their fingers or wrists using sensors in smartphones and smartwatches… According to the patent application, it is possible to authenticate users based on their blood flow patterns as ‘the arterial conduction paths of different users are almost never identical’.”
Garmin introduces the Forerunner 645 Music – a GPS running watch with integrated music and Garmin Pay contactless payments — Garmin — “[Garmin] today announced the Forerunner 645 Music, a GPS running watch with integrated music that gives athletes the freedom to enjoy their favourite tunes on a run or during a workout without having to take a phone along. Additionally, when in need of a bottle of water or a quick bite to eat, Garmin Pay contactless payment solution lets users pay for purchases with their watch and keep on moving.”
Apple Watch GymKit syncing arrives in exactly one US gym — Engadget — “GymKit syncing on the Apple Watch technically arrived with watchOS 4.1, but there’s been one main obstacle to using it: Actually finding a gym that supports it. Only one fitness center each in Australia and the UK have enabled it so far… One solitary gym in New York City, Life Time Athletic at Sky, now has 13 GymKit-capable machines (including treadmills, bikes, ellipticals and stair steppers) that will pair with your smartwatch.”
Fidesmo and Haikara collaborate on the future of smartwatches — Fidesmo — “Haikara is the world’s thinnest smartwatch that lasts for up to a week on one charge. It allows you to change your watch face to match your outfit and mood, and it looks great on your wrist. By using Fidesmo’s platform Haikara will enable their customers to pay, access their office building or use public transport.”
Digital challenger bank Starling is the first to support Fitbit Pay in the UK — City AM — “Customers of digital challenger Starling will be able to pay using their Fitbit smartwatch as it becomes the first bank in the UK to support Fitbit Pay… Starling added support for Apple Pay, which works on both the Apple Watch and iPhones, over the summer and Android Pay in September.”
Fashion brands looking to include payments capabilities in their wearable devices need solutions that are pre-certified, inexpensive, easy to implement and offer the wearer the ability to quickly and easily add their choice of payment, transit, loyalty and identity cards throughout the lifetime of their watch or fashion accessory, wearables platform provider Fidesmo explains in a new white paper which is now available to download free of charge from the NFC World Knowledge Centre... More
Switzerland becomes first European country to allow Visa payments on Fitbit smartwatch — Telecompaper — “Visa is introducing its mobile payment function for the Fitbit smartwatch in Switzerland, the first European country to get the service… To pay with Fitbit Ionic, the Visa card of a partner card issuer must be loaded into the Fitbit companion application. Currently, this is possible for customers of Cornercard. BonusCard and other banks will follow.”
Garmin has unveiled a GPS-enabled smartwatch that includes an NFC contactless payments service called Garmin Pay which supports cards from both Visa and Mastercard and enables the wearer to “make secure payments from the watch, no phone or wallet required.”... More
Samsung challenges Apple Watch with its new Gear Sport smartwatch — Yahoo Finance — “Like the Gear S3, the Gear Sport also includes NFC wireless capabilities to allow for Samsung Pay transactions. You can use the watch as a remote control for Samsung’s GearVR virtual-reality headset.”
Fitness wearable maker Fitbit has launched Ionic, a smartwatch that will combine health and fitness functions with the ability to make contactless Visa, Mastercard and American Express payments as well as payments using the wearer’s Starbucks Card account... More
Singapore’s POSB bank has provided 6,000 primary school children with smartwatches equipped with fitness tracking and mobile payments capabilities in a bid to “teach students how to save and spend wisely by helping them track their savings and spending habits digitally.”... More
A select group of ABN Amro customers has begun piloting payments using NFC-enabled rings supplied by Kerv and smartwatches... More
PARTNER NEWS: NFC World partners Mahindra Comviva and Rambus are among the 13 companies that signed up to participate in Visa’s token service provider (TSP) platform earlier this month... More
KISA to unveil bio authentication for mobile banking in 2018 — Korea Herald — “Korea Internet & Security Agency is developing bio authentication for mobile banking to commercialize it by late 2018… The biometric authentication reads heart rates and electrocardiograms on a user’s smartwatch, which sends the information to his or her smartphone. The smartphone is then unlocked with the user’s fingerprint which enables the use of mobile banking.”
