Dutch mobile operators and banks have decided not to form a joint venture to roll out NFC services together, saying “developments in the market” were responsible for ending the deal that was nearly three years in the making.
The telcos, KPN and Vodafone Netherlands; and banks, ING, Rabobank and ABN Amro; in September 2010 announced they would set up the joint venture, which they dubbed Sixpack. T-Mobile Netherlands later dropped out of the group, citing difficulty finding a business case and return on investment.
In an announcement released today, the parties said they would continue to “cooperate for the introduction of mobile-proximity payments” and still plan to launch NFC in 2013, as before with the Sixpack initiative. They said they would “discuss an appropriate governance structure for their cooperation.”
