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Telco and Bank in Brazil to Launch NFC Pilot; Rollout to Follow

Published: Jun 3 2013

Mobile operator TIM Brasil and Banco Bradesco have disclosed plans for an NFC trial that they say would enable users to pay for purchases at contactless point-of-sale terminals by tapping their Motorola or LG Electronics NFC phones, with the funds deducted from their debit accounts.

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Russian Issuer to Launch NFC Payment on Embedded Chips in HTC, Philips Phones

Published: Jun 2 2013

A Russian mobile wallet and services provider is turning to embedded secure elements in a trio of Android smartphones to launch a MasterCard PayPass application in Russia this summer.

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Taiwanese Telco and Banks Announce Plans for NFC-Payment Projects

Published: May 29 2013
May 29 2013

Taiwan’s largest mobile operator, Chunghwa Telecom, and four banks announced plans today to launch NFC mobile payment, likely starting with Cathay United Bank and a six-month pilot.

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Isis Gears Up for National Launch Despite Challenges Ahead

Published: May 23 2013

The Isis joint venture continues to gear up for a nationwide launch of its NFC-enabled Isis Mobile Wallet this year and has been in discussions with major U.S. banks along with merchants, NFC Times has learned.

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MasterCard Prepares to Offer PayPass on Embedded Chips in Samsung NFC Phones

Published: May 23 2013

MasterCard Worldwide is the latest payment scheme to work with Samsung Electronics, with plans to soon offer its PayPass application for embedded chips in new Samsung NFC phones, NFC Times has learned.

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UK Taxis Get NFC Tags for Promo Campaign; NFC Dynamic Screens to Play at French Sporting Event

Published: May 23 2013

Samsung Electronics, along with Australia-based NFC marketing firm Tapit, UK-based out-of-home advertising company Chiel and terminal vendor VeriFone are rolling out NFC stickers to 80 taxis in the UK, as part of a promotional campaign for musician Robbie Williams’ upcoming Samsung-sponsored tour.

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Visa Europe: Contactless Transactions to Continue to Grow Rapidly in 2013

Published: May 22 2013

Consumers in Europe did 19 million transactions with Visa-branded contactless bank cards in March, up by nearly 50% from December, announced Visa Europe Tuesday, which predicts monthly transactions will increase to 52 million by the end of 2013.

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OTI to Supply Contactless and NFC Readers for Gasoline Stations in North America

Published: May 21 2013

Israel-based contactless and NFC vendor On Track Innovations announced Monday it had received an order for 30,000 readers for point-of-sale terminals at retail gasoline stations in North America.

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Taxis in Major U.S. Cities to Get NFC-Enabled Video Ads

Published: May 16 2013

Riders in 5,000 taxicabs in the U.S. would be able to tap on NFC tags on video advertising screens to download apps, brand information, coupons, maps, music and videos, according to technology suppliers that have equipped the taxis for potential advertising campaigns.

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Royal Bank of Canada and Bell Mobility Announce Plans for NFC Launch

Published: May 13 2013
May 14 2013

Canada’s largest bank and one of its three major mobile operators have announced plans to commercially launch NFC payments by the end of the year, following a trial this summer.

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Analyst: Banks Have More to Fear from Cloud-Based Technologies Than NFC

Published: May 13 2013

Banks have much more to fear from cloud-based mobile payment than from NFC, even if mobile operators control the secure elements that hold the banks’ payment applications.

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GSMA Proposes Global Standard for NFC-Enabled Loyalty and Couponing–Using SIM Cards

Published: May 9 2013
May 10 2013

The GSMA mobile operator trade group is proposing a global standard for how point-of-sale terminals talk to NFC-enabled mobile wallets to enable consumers to redeem coupons and rewards.

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Taiwanese Bank Gets Approval for NFC-Enabled Credit Cards; Okay for Other Banks Expected

Published: May 9 2013

Taiwanese banking regulators, as expected, have approved the first bank to issue mobile credit cards that could be downloaded over the air to SIM cards.

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Google Wallet Chief Bedier Departs Company as Wallet Continues to Struggle

Published: May 9 2013
May 13 2013

Google’s vice president of wallet and payments has left the company, following a difficult tenure for the former PayPal executive, who had tried to establish the Google Wallet for physical world payments and offers.

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UK Retailer Marks & Spencer Sees Growing Use of Contactless

Published: May 7 2013

Marks & Spencer, one of the UK’s largest retailers, announced today it had rolled out contactless payment to 644 of its UK stores and said 14% of its card transactions under £20 (US$30.97) are contactless.

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Identive Reports Growing NFC Business; Blames Flat Sales, Losses, on U.S. Budget Cuts

Published: May 3 2013

U.S.-based Identive Group reported growing NFC and smart card reader business, but fell back into the red during for the first quarter, a loss it largely blamed on U.S. federal government budget cuts.

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German Bank and Telco Hold Small NFC Trial; Larger Launches Planned in Country This Year

Published: May 2 2013

As Germany gears up for NFC, German bank Dortmunder Volksbank along with Telefónica (O2) Germany have launched a small pilot putting a credit application onto SIM cards in Western Germany.

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Cashless Technology Company Announces Rollout of Isis SmartTap on Vending Machines

Published: May 1 2013

Vending technology company USA Technologies plans to integrate the SmartTap mobile-commerce software into all of the company’s nearly 100,000 NFC-enabled terminals on vending machines nationwide.

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Infineon Introduces New Embedded Secure Element, Hoping to Tap Growing Market

Published: Apr 30 2013

Germany-based Infineon Technologies today introduced a new embedded secure element, targeting the growing market for chips that handset makers are including in their NFC-enabled devices.

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Vendor Group: NFC Secure Element Market to Grow by Two-Thirds This Year

Published: Apr 29 2013

Smart card vendor association Eurosmart has substantially increased its estimate for NFC secure element shipments for 2012–by 50% to 150 million units–and forecasts that secure element shipments will grow by another 67% in 2013 to 250 million units.

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Inside Reports NFC Revenue Down Sharply in First Quarter; Some Recovery Expected in Q2

Published: Apr 25 2013

France-based chip supplier Inside Secure today reported a sharp decline in its revenue in the first quarter from its NFC chips, blaming the situation on excess inventories of NFC chips on hand by its main customer BlackBerry.

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Australian Supermarket Chain Sees Fast Take-Up of Contactless Payment

Published: Apr 25 2013

More than half of credit card transactions at Australian supermarket chain Coles are contactless, and the merchant hit the milestone just over six months after rolling out contactless terminals across its more than 700 supermarkets.

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Vendor Group: Contactless Payment Card Shipments Soar in 2012

Published: Apr 23 2013

Major smart card vendors shipped more than 224 million contactless banking cards in 2012, 23% of the total banking smart cards shipped globally by the vendors, up from 15% of total shipments in 2011.

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Identive Announces Large Tag Order for Mobile-Retail Application

Published: Apr 23 2013

NFC tag supplier Identive announced it has received orders for 4 million NFC tags to support a retail project in France and a payment and banking project in Africa.

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NXP Reports Slower Growth for NFC Chips, But Notes Market is in ‘Early Innings’

Published: Apr 23 2013

NXP Semiconductors today said sales of its NFC chips and secure elements grew by just under 3% during the first quarter compared with the previous quarter, a lower growth rate than during 2012, though CEO Richard Clemmer sounded optimistic tones about prospects for future growth.

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Deals

California Issues Notice of Intent to Award Contracts to Vendors for Planned Statewide Open-Loop Payments Rollout

Published: Dec 20 2021

California state officials have released a list of seven bidders it intends to award contracts to for the supply of core technology for the state’s ambitious plan to help more than 300 transit agencies roll out open-loop fare payments statewide.

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Moscow to Test Mobility-as-a-Service Platform that will Include Use of Contactless Payments

Published: Dec 20 2021

The Moscow Department of Transport has announced it is launching a test of its planned “MultiTransport” mobility-as-a-service platform, which will enable users to plan and pay for rides on the Moscow Metro and other public transit, along with taxis. The city said it is planning to add other transport modes, including car-share and bike and scooter rental.

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Vietnam Bus Operator Launches Contactless Open-Loop Payments in Small Rollout; Backers Hope Other Transport Modes Will Follow

Published: Dec 20 2021

A commercial bus company serving Vietnam’s capital, Hanoi, has launched contactless open-loop payments on board its new electronic buses, and reports say officials and bankers would like to see contactless EMV payments expanded to other modes of transport.

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Moscow Metro Sees Modest Take-Up in Use of Face Pay So Far; Repeats Prediction that Up to 15% of Regular Riders Will Use Service

Published: Dec 20 2021

Moscow Metro has 45,000 users for its Face Pay service since launching its rollout of facial recognition fare-payments in mid-October, the transit agency said today, in releasing more details about how the service works.

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Updated: U.S. Transit Agency Seeks to Reduce–Though Not Eliminate–Cash Acceptance with New Fare-Collection System

Published: Dec 9 2021

Updated: The Spokane Transit Authority in Washington state confirmed that its new fare-collection system will include contactless open-loop payments–with a beta test planned for next October, a spokesman told NFC Times' sister publication Mobility Payments.

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Australian Transit Agency to Launch Mobility-as-a-Service Trial as It Pursues Long-Term MaaS Strategy

Published: Dec 9 2021

Plans by Transport for New South Wales, Australia’s largest transit agency, to launch a trial enabling users to plan, book and pay for multimodal rides is the next step toward the agency’s long-ter

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UK Government Seeks to Bring London-Style Contactless Fare Payments System to Other Regions

Published: Nov 30 2021

The UK government’s plan to equip 700 rail stations over the next three years to accept contactless open-loop payments is a major initiative, as it seeks to replicate the success of London’s contactless pay-as-you go fare payments system elsewhere in the country–a goal that has proved elusive in the past.

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More Cities in Finland Expected to Move to Open-Loop Fare Payments

Published: Nov 16 2021

A fourth city in Finland is beginning to roll out contactless open-loop payments, with “more in the pipeline,” according to one supplier on the project, making the Nordic country one of the latest hotspots for the technology.

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Moscow Metro Expands Test of ‘Virtual Troika’ in Pays Wallets, as It Continues to Develop Digital-Payments Services

Published: Nov 16 2021

Moscow Metro is recruiting more users to test its “Virtual Troika” card in two NFC wallets, those supporting Google Pay and Samsung Pay, as one of the world’s largest subway operators continues to seek more ways for its customers to pay for rides.

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Ohio Transit Agency Expects Significant Revenue Loss as it Builds Equity with Fare Capping

Published: Nov 16 2021

The Central Ohio Transit Authority, or COTA, officially launched its new digital-payments service Monday, including a fare-capping feature that the agency estimates will cost it $1.8 million per year in lost fare revenue, the agency confirmed to Mobility Payments.

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Features

Panel: Closed-Loop Payments Expected to Remain an Option for Years to Come Despite Growth of Open Loop

Published: Sep 27 2021
By: 
Dan Balaban

While the trend today is for more transit agencies to introduce open-loop fare payments, closed-loop cards, either in physical form or dematerialized on smartphones and wearables, will be with us for many years to come–though perhaps in a reduced role. That’s according to a recent panel discussion at the Mobility Payments Asia Pacific 2021 conference.

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Cubic’s MaaS Point Man: Control of MaaS Apps by VC-Funded Start-Ups Coming to an End; Whim App Chief: Not So Fast

Published: Aug 8 2021
By: 
Dan Balaban

Andy Taylor, senior director, global strategy for Cubic Transportation Systems contended that the MaaS market is at a crossroads and could fail if it doesn’t change course, including putting cities and public agencies firmly in the “driving seat” of MaaS apps.

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In-Depth: As Covid-19 Causes Transit Ridership to Plummet, Third-Party Mobile-Ticketing Vendors Hope to Help Bring Riders Back

Published: May 18 2020
By: 
Dan Balaban

NFC TIMES Exclusive Insight – As the Covid-19 crisis sows fear among mass transit customers and causes ridership on buses, trains and trams to crash, there is heightened interest in mobile ticketing and other electronic fare payments as a way to ease the concerns and help coax wary riders to return.  

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Analysis: Apple Chips Away at Fortress Europe with Another Major Bank Planning to Join Apple Pay

Published: Apr 24 2019
By: 
Dan Balaban

NFC TIMES Exclusive Insight – With Switzerland’s No. 2 bank, Credit Suisse, expected to participate in Apple Pay, the U.S.-based tech giant continues to chip away at resistance among major European banks to joining its digital payments service.

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U.S. Football Sees NFC-Enabled E-Tickets as way to Cut Fraud, Market to Fans

Published: Aug 15 2018
By: 
K.N. Smith

NFC TIMES Exclusive Insight – With the National Football League kicking off its season in a few weeks in the U.S., fans will be using NFC, QR codes and perhaps ultrasonic signals on their mobile devices, in addition to tapping contactless-enabled paper tickets, to attend football games and other events at all 31 NFL stadiums.

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In-Depth: As U.S. Lags in Contactless Payments, are Issuers Ready to Roll Out Dual-Interface EMV Cards?

Published: Jul 30 2018
By: 
K.N. Smith

NFC TIMES Exclusive Insight – Most issuers in the U.S. have so far held back from rolling out contactless or dual-interface cards, but merchant acceptance has been quietly building over the past few years, despite some large U.S. retailers balking at accepting contactless cards and NFC-enabled devices.

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In-Depth: Can Contactless Cards Succeed in U.S. Where NFC Mobile Wallets Have Failed?

Published: Jun 19 2018
By: 
K.N. Smith

NFC TIMES Exclusive Insight – Payments industry backers suggest that U.S. banks could have an incentive to begin contactless rollouts soon, but in the absence of deadlines from the major payments networks, which are rapidly approaching in other markets, there's no guarantee of rollouts in the U.S. on the horizon.

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How Mobile Wallets, Payments Wearables, Tokenization Fared the Past Year, and Where They Stand Now

Published: Jan 11 2018
By: 
Dan Balaban

NFC TIMES Exclusive – As the digital payments ecosystem moves into 2018, it is dealing with many of the same unfulfilled promises, works in progress and unfinished business as in 2017.

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U.S. Merchant Apps Square Off Against NFC ‘Pays’ Wallets: The Retailer Perspective

Published: Jan 2 2018
By: 
K.N. Smith

NFC TIMES Exclusive – As more U.S. merchants launch their own payments apps, some seem positioned to offer serious competition to Apple Pay and the other NFC “Pays” wallets.

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Backers Look to Range of Devices for Contextual Commerce, Though Fragmentation Will Pose Challenges

Published: Dec 1 2017
By: 
K.N. Smith

NFC TIMES Exclusive Insight – Promoters of contextual commerce are looking to a range of connected devices, including smart appliances and such home hubs as Alexa–along with a host of mobile devices–to enable consumers to pay in almost every context. But many challenges remain for what could become a “very disjointed” array of payment options, experts say.

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