Leading Swedish retail chain ICA says it picked NFC for the rewards programme at its ICA To Go food store in Stockholm because it will appeal to the tech savvy, health-conscious city dwellers it wants to attract. More

US iPhone users can now order a case containing an NFC microSD card online and use it to make payments with their mobile phone. An Android version will be added during the second quarter of 2012 and there are plans to make the technology available internationally from the end of the year. More

"A passenger using an NFC-enabled device can be processed faster than any of the current boarding processes available today", says the air transportation technology giant. More

The Turkish mobile network operator has become the first in the world to offer its subscribers the ability to make payments with their NFC-enabled BlackBerry mobile phones. More

The wireless product specialist has revealed high-end headphones and a speaker dock, both designed by Philippe Starck, which incorporate NFC-initiated Bluetooth pairing for smartphones. More

The European Commission has published a green paper assessing the current card, internet and mobile payments landscape and is asking stakeholders to contribute their thoughts on how to ensure a modern, integrated payments environment can be implemented across Europe. More

"The difference in NFC tag performance was both significant and surprising," says the NFC tag provider, and there was one clear winner in terms of overall performance. More

4T Sverige, the joint venture company set up by Sweden's four mobile network operators, is to launch a mobile payments service that works with 97% of current phones and also provides support for NFC. More

The US carrier has revealed it will be adding two further NFC phones to its line up, the Galaxy Nexus and the LG Viper, and more are on their way. More

The mobile network operator will begin commercial NFC services from the end of January with partners including Japan Airlines, credit card issuers, loyalty programme providers and retailers. More

The Italian financial institution's new "Move and Pay" NFC payments service is being provided in conjunction with mobile service provider Noverca, in which Intesa is a shareholder. More

Technology provider Etick, mobile network operator MTN-Irancell and Bank Pasargad have teamed up to demonstrate NFC payments in Iran. More

La Caixa is to equip all its 17,000 retail points-of-sale in Barcelona with contactless POS terminals while BBVA and Bankia are converting 7,000 points-of-sale in central Madrid, with the aim of paving the way for NFC mobile payments. More

Sony has announced two Xperia NFC smartphones, the Xperia Ion which is exclusive to AT&T in the US and the Xperia S which will be available worldwide this quarter, as well as read-only NFC Xperia SmartTags. More

The BCM21552G is a single chip that incorporates a modem and application processor as well as support for NFC and is designed for smartphones retailing at under US$100. More

The Samsung Galaxy S II, LG Optimus Net NFC, BlackBerry Bold 9900/9790 and BlackBerry Curve 9360/9380 have now been added to the list of approved Visa payments products, enabling financial institutions to use them in commercial NFC deployments for the first time. More

An NFC-based portable keyboard for smartphones has eliminated the usual pairing step associated with accessories — users simply place their NFC phone on the keyboard and start typing. More

Five million Koreans already have an NFC phone, says mobile network operator KT, and payments for bus, subway and taxi fares are the most popular NFC applications. More

23% of US consumers are now "very willing" to use their mobile phone as a wallet, a KPMG survey has found, but many consumers are still expressing privacy and security concerns. More