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Platform Providers Predict Demand for White-Label Wallets; Some Merchants See Room for Improvement

Published: Oct 31 2013

While mobile-wallet platform providers see demand for white-label wallets, some merchants say they see room for improvement in current offerings.

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Possible Fragmentation an Issue as Dutch Banks and Telcos Prepare for NFC, Post ‘Sixpack’

Published: Oct 29 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: Whereas three years ago, major banks and telcos in the Netherlands looked like they would move forward together on NFC mobile payments, with plans to form a first-of-its kind joint venture, the situation today promises to be much different.

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Inside Modifies Corporate Structure, as It Continues to Pull Back from NFC Controller Market

Published: Oct 28 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: Inside Secure has reorganized its business units, as it continues to refocus its strategy toward embedded security while pulling back from the NFC controller market.

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NXP Sees Second Straight Quarterly Drop in NFC Revenue; Predicts ‘Reacceleration’ in 2014

Published: Oct 28 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: NXP Semiconductors said its NFC revenue fell in the third quarter, the second straight quarterly drop, though CEO Richard Clemmer said the Netherlands-based ch

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G&D’s Cards Chief Departs; Replaced by Former Wincor Nixdorf Exec

Published: Oct 25 2013

Germany-based Giesecke & Devrient today announced that the head of its banking and SIM card business, which includes its TSM, Michael Kuemmerle, has left the company and has been replaced by the former head of the global banking business for Germany-based Wincor Nixdorf.

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Gemalto CEO: It’s a ‘Race’ between Isis and MCX, Though Both to Get Head Start on M-Payments in U.S.

Published: Oct 24 2013
Oct 25 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: France-based Gemalto today reported higher revenue in the third quarter for its mobile-payments platforms as well as increased shipments of NFC SIMs and dual-interface banking cards.

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Popular Chinese Smartphone Maker Incorporates Embedded Secure Element

Published: Oct 24 2013

France-based Oberthur Technologies has announced its embedded secure element is included in the newest Android handset, the Mi3, from China’s popular smartphone maker Xiaomi, and predicted the chip will enable NFC mobile payment in China.

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MCX Merchant Group to Enable Payments Through Individual and Core Apps

Published: Oct 22 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: The U.S. MCX merchant consortium will introduce its own mobile-commerce app, as well as making much of the same functionality available in individual apps from its members–including a proprietary mobile-payments service based on QR codes.

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Australian Bank Likely First to Launch Payment on Samsung Embedded Chips; Other Banks Interested

Published: Oct 22 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: Australia’s Commonwealth Bank has disclosed plans to put a MasterCard PayPass application onto an embedded secure element in selected Android NFC phones, the first major bank to disclose plans for launching commercial NFC payments on embedded chips since Google Wallet.

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European mPOS Providers Report Growth, See Advantage in EMV Experience

Published: Oct 22 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: Mobile point-of-sale providers in Europe see significant growth in merchant numbers and transaction volumes and believe that EMV compliance will give European point-of-sale companies a leg up as they look to expand to the U.S.

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Samsung Splits Supply Contracts for NFC Chips for Galaxy Note 3 Between Broadcom and NXP

Published: Oct 22 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: Samsung Electronics has split the NFC chip supply contracts for its new Galaxy Note 3, possibly the first major NFC device that has multiple chip suppliers, NFC Times has learned.

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China Mobile to Miss NFC Handset and User Goals This Year; Plans Measures to Accelerate Rollout

Published: Oct 17 2013

New York, NY – China Mobile will miss its goal of rolling out 10 million NFC phones and signing up three million users by the end of 2013, citing problems with handset makers implementing NFC on enough phones, among other issues.

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NFC Backer Chunghwa Telecom Seeks Cut of Transaction Fees with New QR Code Payments Service

Published: Oct 14 2013

Taipei, TAIWAN – NFC Times Exclusive: Chunghwa Telecom, Taiwan’s largest mobile operator and a long-time backer of NFC, has introduced its QR code-based mobile-payments service, with plans to pursue NFC and QR code mobile-payments in separate tracks.

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Isis Provides Peek at New Wallet; Offers Simplified Interface for National Launch

Published: Oct 14 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: As it prepares to launch its national rollout, the Isis joint venture seeks to simplify the user interface for consumers to conduct payments and redeem offers and rewards with the second version of its mobile wallet.

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NFC SIM Shipments Hit 30 Million in H1–Matching Full-Year 2012, as Isis Gears Up; 80 million Projected This Year

Published: Oct 3 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: SIM vendors shipped a little more than 31 million NFC SIM cards to mobile operators during the first half of 2013–equaling the number of NFC SIMs during all of 2012–and shipments are projected to hit 80 million for all of 2013, according to figures and forecasts obtained by NFC Times.

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National Australia Bank Launches Funds Transfer Service Initiated by NFC Peer-to-Peer Mode

Published: Oct 3 2013

National Australia Bank has introduced a peer-to-payment application, which enables customers to transfer funds, initiated by NFC or QR codes or by using a mobile number, email address or Facebook account.

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French Telcos Delay National NFC Rollouts; Vendors Blamed, in Part, for Interoperability Problems

Published: Oct 3 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: French mobile operators are delaying their nationwide rollout, citing interoperability problems among TSMs and SIMs provided by different vendors, among other issues, NFC Times has learned.

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Sprint to Take on Isis with ‘Open’ NFC Platform; Won't Offer Own Wallet

Published: Oct 3 2013

No. 3 U.S. mobile carrier Sprint has announced its long-anticipated NFC-based mobile-commerce platform, with plans to introduce a new “open” model for enabling NFC payment, transit ticketing, access control and merchant applications.

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Sales of NFC-Enabled Retail Shelf Labels Expected to More than Double in 2014: Vendor

Published: Sep 28 2013

NICE, France – Store Electronic Systems forecasts it will sell at least 10 million electronic shelf labels with NFC chips inside to merchants next year, at least double the NFC-enabled shelf labels it will sell this year, the France-based company said this week.

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Barclaycard US Sees Higher Use of QR-Code M-Payment When Combined with Offers; but Commercial Plans Unclear

Published: Sep 22 2013

NFC Times Exclusive: Payment transactions increased significantly for several merchants trialing a QR-code-based mobile-payment app from Barclaycard US when the merchants added offers, though overall take-up of the bPay app has been modest, according to interviews with merchants conducted by NFC Times.

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NFC Forum Taps New Executive Director with Tech Association Background

Published: Sep 20 2013

NFC Forum’s pick for its new executive director, Paula Hunter, will be taking over the day-to-day operation of the standards and trade group as it seeks to help spur more market adoption of NFC technology.

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Google Introduces Update To Wallet App; Continues Support for NFC for In-Store Payments

Published: Sep 17 2013
Sep 20 2013

New features announced by Google today for its wallet do not support NFC, but the search giant made it clear it continues to support the technology for in-store payments.

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Observers: Lack of NFC in Next iPhone Models Won’t Hurt Industry; Though Could Have Boosted Take-Up

Published: Sep 16 2013
Sep 18 2013

Apple’s decision to again pass on NFC technology for its latest iPhones was not unexpected, and the industry will move on, NFC industry sources told NFC Times.

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Gemalto Needs Market Momentum on Mobile Payments to Hit Ambitious Profit Goals

Published: Sep 12 2013

NFC Times Exclusive Analysis: France-based Gemalto has set an ambitious goal of doubling its operating profits by 2017, and the ramping up of trusted service management business is key to hitting that objective.

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Apple Introduces New Fingerprint Technology, as Expected, But Passes on NFC Again

Published: Sep 10 2013

As widely expected, the new iPhone 5S will feature a fingerprint sensor on the home button, along with a faster processor and more colors–but no NFC.

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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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