HEADLINE NEWS

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

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

Published: May 9 2013
May 10 2013 (All day)

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

Gemalto Reveals Some Details of MCX Deal; Vendor Will Earn Fees for Transactions

Published: Apr 25 2013

France-based smart card and security vendor Gemalto will operate the mobile-payment platform for U.S. merchant group MCX, earning a fee for every transaction, in addition to what appears to be a hosting fee it says is worth tens of millions.

Read more »
TAGS:

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

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.

Read more »
TAGS:

Singapore: SingTel Announces Plans for Launch NFC with Payment Service Provider EZ-Link

Published: Aug 23 2012
Singapore,
Scope: 
Rollout
Status: 
Planned
Launch: 
Apr 2013
Main Application: 
Payment
Mobile Operator: 
SingTel
Service Provider (application): 
EZ-Link (Prepaid card for retail payment)
Merchants: 
About 20,000 point-of-sale terminals in Singapore supporting ez-link and the national CEPAS technology standard (not including transit fare-collection terminals)
Users: 
N/A
NFC Handsets: 
Sony Xperia S
NFC Handsets: 
Samsung Galaxy S Advance
NFC Handsets: 
Sony Xperia P
TSM*: 
Gemalto
Secure Element: 
SIM
Other Vendors: 
Gemalto (NFC SIMs, likely), NXP Semiconductors (NFC phone chips)

SingTel announced it is enabling subscribers to pay for retail purchases with the ez-link electronic purse issued by payment service provider EZ-Link Pte. on three Android NFC phones to begin with. Subscribers can download the EZ-Link mobile app from the Google Play store and will be able to view their transaction history and balance and top up the purse over the air. But as of early 2013, SingTel had not definitively launched its commercial service.

 

NFC Times Take: 

SingTel, Singapore’s largest operator, is one of three major telcos  in Singapore that have announced commercial launches for August. The launches are part of a consortium led by France-based TSM Gemalto chosen by government telecoms and IT regulator Infocomm Development Authority to build an interoperable NFC infrastructure. The contract for the consortium comes with funding from the IDA. Besides SingTel, telcos StarHub and M1 have also announced launches. Both SingTel and M1 said they would charge fees to subscribers for their NFC SIMs and service activation–perhaps a first among the few NFC commercial launches worldwide. StarHub is expected to do the same.

TAGS:

Related Content

Singaporean Mobile Operators Launch NFC Payment on Android Phones
Consortium Misses Deadline for Singapore NFC Launch; Project Tests Government-Led Approach
Singaporean Government Awards TSM Contract; Expects NFC Launch in mid-2012
Singaporean Telco to Launch NFC Movie Ticketing, Though Wallet Off to Slow Start
MasterCard and Wallet Software Provider C-SAM Announce Partnership, Investment
Singapore NFC Consortium Members Say They are Readied for Launch
Gemalto Announces Long-Held Isis TSM Deal
Gemalto Reveals Some Details of MCX Deal; Vendor Will Earn Fees for Transactions
U.S. Merchant Group MCX Chooses Gemalto as Wallet Supplier
Gemalto Sees Future in Platforms and Services, Including TSM Business