Patents

NFC-on-microSD specialist DeviceFidelity has been granted patent number ZL200880107195.2 in China, bringing the company's portfolio up to a total of 40 patents relating to NFC and security technologies. The newly-issued patent covers an NFC based... More

Loyalty and payments specialist Eagle Eye Solutions has been granted US and European patents for an EMV-based digital coupon and gift voucher solution that allows point-of-sale terminals to be used to both process card payments... More

A simple add-on adapter for NFC phones cuts the cost of equipping staff with a reader for InfoChip's 8mm industrial tags by more than half, the company says, and will "bring profound revolution in safety compliance, inspection management and industrial asset management." More

The display technology enables NFC phone users to interact with video promotions, to collect coupons, download content, navigate through advertising media and add products to a mobile shopping basket. More

The new technology involves placing multiple NFC chips on a single tag base that are individually triggered when a consumer places their mobile phone on the base and presses a button. "Think of it like an NFC keyboard," says founder Joanna Rogerson. More

KT's MoCa combines payment cards, coupons and offers stored in the cloud with a mobile wallet app that allows consumers to make payments at merchants via traditional barcodes, QR codes or NFC — providing retailers with the flexibility to use their prefered choice of POS hardware to close the "last inch" at the point-of-sale. More

Peter Sprogis, a co-founder of NFC pioneer MoLo Rewards, is suing Google for allegedly infringing US Patent No. 7,298,271 with Google Wallet, patent attorney Leonid Kravets reports. The patent was issued in November 2007 and... More

The new device includes two secure elements, allowing users with standard mobile phones to make both NFC payments in stores and securely access mobile banking and online payments services. More

The 'will they or won't they' speculation over whether the iPhone 5, expected to be unveiled on 12 September, will come with NFC continues to rage and the latest analysis suggests that it won't —... More

Apple has been granted US patent number 8,239,276, entitled 'On-the-go shopping list'. Originally filed in September 2008, the patent references NFC extensively. The abstract describes the system as follows: Systems and methods for providing shopping-related... More

Mobile network Orange has joined the NFC Patent Licensing Program, a patent pool run by France Brevets and launched in June with Inside Secure. "Our licensees will benefit, in addition to key patents brought by... More

DeviceFidelity has been granted a European patent covering technology underlying its iCaisse NFC add-on for Apple devices. "Following patents granted in the US for this solution, our microSD NFC technology, our multi-institution mobile wallet and... More

The iTravel patent covers the use of an NFC-enabled iPhone for buying an airline ticket, checking in baggage and passing through security. More

Israel-based contactless technology developer On Track Innovations has been granted two new patents. US patent 8,195,236, "Retrofit contactless smart SIM functionality in mobile communicators" covers adding NFC to mobile phones with a SIM+antenna add-on, while... More

The NFC chip specialist has hired IP commercialisation specialist France Brevets to handle licensing of more than seventy patents — including a core patent that is expected to mean any manufacturer incorporating an NFC controller into their device will need to acquire a license. More

A new Samsung patent application describes a capacitive stylus pen for use with a portable terminal, such as the Galaxy Note, that includes NFC "embedded in the body portion to perform wireless communication with the... More

Two patents that relate to miniaturising NFC antennas to fit within microSD cards and other small form factors are now available for licensing. US based NFC-on-microSD pioneer Tyfone has secured further patents that it says... More

Google has been granted a patent for transferring application state information from one device to another via NFC, a system which is similar to the company's Android Beam service. The patent outlines methods to allow... More

Apple has applied for a patent covering processes for gifting digital content to friends using transmission methods including NFC, according to Patently Apple. The iPhone maker's patent application outlines a two-step confirmation process: Users can... More

Phone maker Sony has applied for a patent which could see fingerprint sensors and cameras built into mobile phone screens. "Many technology analysts predict that mobile phones fitted with near field communication (NFC) technology will... More