For mobile network operators, the introduction reflects industry agreement on a very complex subject matter, says the secure element standards organisation. “For service providers and issuers it provides reassurances that an application will perform as intended regardless of the mobile device being used.” More
NFC-SIM
HID Global reports on Silicon Valley NFC access control pilots
A survey of participants in trials conducted at the offices of Netflix and Good Technology has found that more than 80% saw the technology as intuitive and easy to use. More
French carrier SFR to issue own-brand card in move towards NFC payments
Mobile network operator SFR has launched France’s first rechargeable MasterCard PayPass card, in a first step towards issuing its own NFC mobile payment service... More
SimplyTapp proposes secure elements in the cloud
A US-based start-up has developed an alternative approach to storing the sensitive data required to make a transaction with an NFC phone. Rather than placing it in a secure element on the phone, SimplyTapp stores the data in the cloud on a “remote secure element” and passes encrypted transaction data through the phone to a point-of-sale terminal when the user makes a purchase. More
Isis SIMs available from October 1
TmoNews reports that Isis NFC SIMs will be available from T-Mobile stores in Salt Lake City and Austin from Monday 1 October... More
Telefonica begins commercial NFC service in Czech Republic
Two thousand customers who purchase a Samsung Galaxy S III are to be the first Czech consumers to take part in a commercial NFC payments service, offered by carrier Telefonica in conjunction with Komerční Banka, Visa Europe and Samsung. More
Estonian banks to pilot NFC
Estonia’s banks are to begin pilot testing NFC services in January 2013... More
National NFC service to go live in Singapore this month
Mobile network operator StarHub, part of the consortium which won a government contract to provide a national NFC TSM service for Singapore last year, has unveiled its NFC SmartWallet and says the service will begin “later this month”. More
Elisa issues NFC stickers to students
Finnish mobile network operator Elisa has partnered with MasterCard and the student-owned Lyyra discount and benefit card to issue prepaid NFC stickers to more than 100,000 students from the third quarter of 2012... More
Hands on with the Visa Olympics NFC phone
1,000 Samsung Galaxy S III NFC phones equipped with a Visa mobile payments app are being distributed to “key stakeholders and decision makers” for the London 2012 Olympics, where all points of sale will be equipped to handle contactless payments — and NFC World has been testing out one of the limited edition devices. More
Orange France rolls out NFC SIMs
Orange France is to issue NFC SIMs to all its 27m subscribers, making it the first carrier in Europe to deploy NFC-enabled SIM cards nationally... More
Toulouse-Blagnac Airport to test NFC check-ins
“With NFC technology, the mobile phone simplifies the passage of the flyer through the airport,” says the CEO of the first airport in the world to pilot the use of NFC phones to improve the airline passenger experience. More
16m NFC SIMs shipped in 2011
A total of 16m NFC SIMs were shipped globally in 2011, according to the SIMalliance‘s annual review of the global SIM market... More
QNB and Qtel to launch NFC services in Qatar
The bank and mobile network operator have partnered for the launch of the country’s first NFC payments service, using BlackBerry NFC phones as well as NFC stickers. More
GlobalPlatform to put consumers in control of NFC mobile wallets
The secure chip standards body is working on a new approach to the management of NFC secure elements that would allow consumers to pick their own ‘trusted token’ and appoint their own secure service provider. More
Gemalto launches high security NFC SIM
The new UpTeq NFC SIM meets a flight of top level security requirements and, says the digital security firm, can be used to generate legally binding digital signatures as well as deliver both e-health and e-government services. More
FeliCa Networks signs deal with Samsung for Japan’s move to NFC
The joint venture between Sony and carrier NTT Docomo, which runs Japan’s Osaifu-Keitai mobile wallet service, has signed a deal with Samsung for the development of a new chip solution that will provide consumers with phones which work with both NFC services and Japan’s existing mobile payments infrastructure. More
Noverca picks G&D for NFC trial
Giesecke & Devrient has announced that its new Taurus NFC SIMs are being used by Italian MVNO Nòverca for financial institution Intesa Sanpaolo’s NFC pilot in Milan and Turin... More
Turkcell launches NFC payments on BlackBerry phones
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
GSM Association issues new NFC handset requirements
The mobile network operators’ association has published new specifications which could give carriers a major advantage over competing mobile wallet providers but, the GSMA says, the changes are due to technical rather than commercial reasons. More