The NFC Experience at the GSMA’s Mobile World Congress will be expanded in 2014, allowing NFC phones to be used for venue access, catering and networking as well as “demonstrations of the latest NFC and products and services in applications including retail, online commerce and transport.” NFC badges stored on phones will again be used for quick access to the Fira Gran Via venue and, for the first time, to allow entry to the conference facilities in Hall 4... More
Archive: News in brief
Forum and Bluetooth SIG pair up
The NFC Forum and the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), the trade association responsible for overseeing the Bluetooth specification and brand, have signed an agreement that will see the two organisations work more closely to enhance interoperability between the two technologies via a formal liaison relationship... More
FIME to test VMPA on SEs
Testing specialist Fime has been accredited by Visa to validate implementation of the Visa Mobile Payment Application on secure elements... More
OTI wins $10m US NFC order
Contactless technology specialist On Track Innovations has signed a contract to provide US$10m worth of NFC readers with “one of its US channel partners who primarily serves the unattended retail market in North America.” An initial 40,000 readers are due to be shipped by the end of 2013... More
Avery adds NFC packaging
Product packaging manufacturer Avery Dennison has added DirectLink, an NFC-enabled packaging solution, to its range of products... More
Oberthur offers NFC eID
Oberthur Technologies has launched ‘ID-One PIV for eSE’, a software solution that enables US federal government personal identity verification (PIV) credentials to be stored on an embedded NFC secure element, allowing mobile phones to be used for logical and physical access control instead of smart cards... More
Famoco raises US$1m
NFC device maker Famoco has raised a US$1million finance round from two venture capital funds... More
Tappr gets $2m for NFC payments
Australian startup Tappr has raised A$2m in seed funding for an NFC payments service that is due to launch in early 2014... More
CIBC adds Q10 NFC payments
Canadian Bank CIBC has extended availability of its NFC payments service to BlackBerry Q10 owners... More
NFC Forum certifies ACS reader
Advanced Card Systems has received NFC Forum certification for its ACR1252U USB NFC reader... More
BA pilots NFC bag tags
British Airways has begun testing a reusable digital luggage tag that contains an e-ink display and can be updated via NFC with new flight information each time a passenger travels... More
Capital adds NFC to signage
Digital signage software specialist Capital Networks has added NFC to its Audience for Android digital signage solution, an entry-level content management and display system for businesses entering the digital signage market... More
Google posts HCE guide
A detailed guide to Android 4.4 KitKat’s support for Host Card Emulation (HCE), which enables NFC payments and other secure services to be delivered without the use of a secure element, is now available on the Android Developers website... More
Bankmecu tests NFC stickers
Australia’s Bankmecu and card issuer Cuscal have completed an NFC payment sticker trial, enabling consumers to make contactless payments at Visa payWave terminals using a smart sticker stuck to their phone... More
UK gov funds NFC ticketing
The UK Government’s Technology Strategy Board is providing a £1.1m grant to a consortium led by Tedipay that is developing MultiPass, a smart ticketing service designed to offer a single, nationwide travel pass that will always charge travellers the lowest possible fare... More
Comic Con issues NFC badges
Traditional tickets were replaced with NFC badges at this year’s New York Comic Con and staff were provided with Google Nexus 7 NFC tablets that could be used to check them... More
Mad Catz adds NFC keyboard
Computer peripherals manufacturer Mad Catz has announced the Strike M Mobile Keyboard, a wireless gaming keyboard that includes NFC to make it easy for gamers to connect it to NFC-enabled laptops and other mobile devices... More
NFC on the cards for Moonga
Software developer Everdreamsoft is seeking US$75,000 in crowdfunding to produce physical versions of its Moonga online trading cards, enabling gamers to continue earning online points offline... More
Adelaide Airport adds NFC ads
NFC capabilities are to be added to indoor and outdoor digital signage at Adelaide Airport’s domestic and international terminals... More
ZTE adds rugged NFC handset
Smartphone manufacturer ZTE has announced a durable Android NFC handset designed for use in “challenging environments” such as security, transportation, factories and logistics... More