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Near Field Communication and all contactless technology

Karsten Ottenberg, who played a key role in companies launching NFC technology the past 10 years, has resigned as CEO of Germany-based Giesecke & Devrient, a major smart card vendor and trusted service manager.

France-based Gemalto is forecasting double-digit growth in revenue this year, following a strong 2012, in which it reported gains in both sales and profit and the first significant returns for its trusted service management business.

Research In Motion continues to promote its own trusted service management service–the only handset maker to offer one–announcing Wednesday approval by Visa of the service to manage secure elements on NFC phones.

PARIS, France – Smart card vendor association Eurosmart estimates the industry will have shipped nearly 100 million NFC-enabled SIM cards and embedded secure elements by the end of 2012–a figure it projects will double in 2013.

U.S.-based startup Sequent has acquired what appears to be the remaining operational assets of former contactless reader and NFC software vendor Vivotech, purchasing Vivotech’s software unit.

Australian bank Westpac, along with MasterCard Worldwide, today launched an NFC trial that puts a MasterCard PayPass debit application onto SIM cards that run in the Samsung Galaxy S III.

Smart card and ID security company Morpho has signed an agreement to acquire Singapore-based trusted service manager Cassis International, putting another major TSM platform into the hands of a smart card supplier, NFC Times has learned.

Germany-based Giesecke & Devrient is the latest major smart card vendor to license Mifare technology from NXP Semiconductors, enabling G&D to put the transit fare-payment technology

France-based Oberthur Technologies has won a key contract to serve as trusted service manager for France Telecom-Orange group, but lost a TSM contract with big French bank BNP Paribas, NFC Times has learned.

The employee trial is among the first held anywhere offering users the option to download either a Visa or MasterCard contactless credit or debit card onto the same NFC phone.