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Near Field Communication and all contactless technology

Telefónica UK, known as O2, launched its long anticipated O2 Wallet today, offering text-based money transfers and online product searches and purchasing, but no NFC yet.

The United Kingdom’s three largest mobile operators have filed their application with European antitrust regulators, seeking approval for their proposed joint venture to help them roll out NFC mobile wallets and services.

Orange UK has announced what it calls the United Kingdom’s first mobile-contactless retail rewards scheme, enabling subscribers with NFC phones to tap smart posters to receive free food or drink items from a UK restaurant chain.

2012 was going to be the year that the new era of NFC-based mobile commerce had finally arrived–with Google Wallet rolling out widely, mobile operators in the U.S. and Europe making significant inroads with their own mobile wallets and big Asian m-commerce players generally commercializing NFC, as well.

The mobile phone provider Three UK on Wednesday asked the European Commission to block a joint venture of Britain’s three largest operators to sell a common mobile-payment and advertising platform for retailers, arguing that the companies’ influence in the market would result in high fees for consumers. (New York Times)

UPDATED: Facing the prospect of market fragmentation and threats from such new mobile-commerce players as Google, the three largest mobile operators in the United Kingdom plan a joint venture to provide a "one-stop shop" for mobile advertising, payment, ticketing and other services in the telcos’ planned NFC mobile wallets.

Mobile operator Orange UK and payment issuer Barclaycard face challenges as they seek to get their “Quick Tap” service off the ground, say UK analysts.

Orange UK and Barclaycard today announced their much-anticipated commercial launch of NFC, a mobile-payment service called “Quick Tap.”

Mobile operator Orange UK has launched one of the first contactless prepaid payment cards–with the application also likely to be available on NFC phones later this year.