Deutsche Telekom, Telefónica Deutschland and Vodafone have connected their TSM platforms to MasterCard-owned Trevica’s TSM platform for card issuers, providing German banks with a single entry point for deploying NFC payments to 80% of the local population — and MasterCard plans to offer a similar service in other European countries this year. More
The 65 NFC-enabled digital Tap-n-Go Points located around Fira Gran Via for MWC 14 have been produced by KT, the Korean carrier has announced. The NFC Media Poles deliver a range of information services to visitors at the tap of an NFC phone, including films, coupons, tickets, music and advertisements. More
Japanese carrier KDDI, Korea’s SK Planet, Taiwan’s Chunghwa Telecom and Hong Kong Telecommunications (HKT) are to work together to spread adoption of NFC services in Asia, using a shared NFC tag specification, brand mark and platform. More
The Galaxy S5, Samsung’s new flagship smartphone, includes biometric security as well as NFC — and can be used to make payments at any merchant that accepts PayPal online or in store. More
HTC’s Desire 816, a mid-range Android smartphone unveiled at MWC 2014, is set to come in both NFC and non-NFC versions... More
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Russian phone maker Yota Devices is to offer a new version of its YotaPhone, a handset that comes with two displays — this time a 5-inch full HD Amoled screen at the front plus a 4.7-inch always-on, full-touch control electronic paper display to the rear. More
Spain’s CaixaBank has chosen Morpho as its trusted service manager (TSM) for the rollout of the largest commercial NFC mobile payment deployment in Europe to date in terms of customer coverage and number of contactless payments. More
US-based wireless test solutions provider LitePoint has introduced a test system designed to measure and verify the physical layer performance of NFC devices in a high-volume manufacturing environment... More
“We’ve seen this as a vehicle for innovation for financial institutions, for merchants, for others who want to enable payment using the mobile device,” Visa‘s Sam Shrauger has explained at MWC 2014, just a few days after the payment network announced its adoption of host card emulation (HCE) for NFC and QR payments. More
Sony Mobile has launched a smart wristband, two new Xperia smartphones, an Xperia tablet and a range of accessories, all featuring NFC, at MWC 2014. More
Chip maker Broadcom has unveiled a new generation of NFC controllers that reduce power consumption by 60%, lower the total cost for device manufacturers by 35% and cut antenna size by 50% — making them practical for use in both NFC phones and wearables. More
Sony and Gemalto are working together to add Sony FeliCa and NFC functionality to Gemalto microSD cards... More
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Accenture has introduced a mobile wallet platform that supports payments in stores via both NFC and QR as well as peer-to-peer payments, transport, loyalty and gift cards... More
An NFC test lab has been opened in Bangalore, India by Tech Mahindra... More
A wearable Android smartphone that weighs just 78g and comes with an armband-style strap and a pair of JBL earphones has been unveiled at MWC 14 by Alcatel Onetouch. The metallic Idol 2, Idol 2S and Idol 2 Mini S with NFC have also been added to the phone maker’s range. More
Rugged device maker Toughshield has announced a waterproof 7-inch tablet with NFC. The Toughshield T700 is IP68-rated, offers dual SIM slots and runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. More
NXP has teamed up with Microsoft, Lenovo and Identive to run an NFC Windows Application Contest... More
A new reference device, the Firefox OS Flame, has been unveiled by Mozilla at MWC 2014, to enable developers to test the capabilities and newest features of its Firefox OS in a real environment with a mobile network and true hardware characteristics including an accelerometer, NFC functionality and cameras. More
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
Huawei has unveiled a smart wristband that can be paired with a user’s smartphone via NFC at MWC 2014. The TalkBand B1 combines a Bluetooth 4.1 earpiece for wireless calling with a 1.4-inch flexible OLED display and activity tracking. More