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Near Field Communication and all contactless technology

NFC TIMES Exclusive – While NFC tag suppliers and other NFC backers rejoiced over Apple’s recent announcement that it would support NFC tag reading with its next mobile operating system, iOS 11, early indications are that tag reading with Apple NFC devices will not be as open as with Android devices, and the user experience will not be as simple.

NFC Times Exclusive – As the NFC Forum develops its tag Type 5 specification based on the ISO/IEC 15693 protocol, industry sources say that NFC tags using the longer-range protocol could see demand in medical, industrial, and supply chain applications, and most handsets and readers on the market can currently read the tags, although there are still concerns about interoperability and security.

NFC Times Exclusive – The NFC Forum is working on a tag Type 5 specification based on the ISO/IEC 15693 standard, NFC Forum executive director Paula Hunter has confirmed to NFC Times. She did not release a timeframe for publishing of the new specification, however.

As the NFC Forum launches a new program to attract more application developers to the NFC ecosystem, the organization told NFC Times that it is encouraged by Apple’s adoption but considers it likely that the NFC developer community will focus on Android for the near future.

The NFC Forum has issued a statement of support for host-card emulation at its all-member meeting this week in San Francisco, calling HCE a “promising addition to the portfolio of NFC solutions that could potentially accelerate market growth.”

The NFC Forum’s board has elected co-vice chairmen, representing rival NFC chip makers Broadcom and NXP Semiconductors, as the standards and trade group continues work trying to expand the reach of NFC technology.

NFC Times Exclusive: A set of guidelines from the NFC Forum and the International Air Transport Association may be another step toward eventual rollout of NFC-enabled boarding passes, but observers say the prospects for use of NFC technology in air travel remain up in the air.

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.