Korean mobile operator SK Planet has formed a business alliance with six other Korean tech firms to support the use of NFC technology throughout the country, according to the Korean Herald. The “NFC Biz Partner Group” brings together NFC specialists SK C&C, Ubivelox, QnSolv, Mcom, Harex Infotech, AT Solution and SK Planet, which itself is […]

Taiwan-based handset maker HTC is set to announce a partnership with Cathay United Bank, EasyCard and MasterCard to launch a co-branded card that can be inserted into an HTC smart phone to enable NFC payments nationwide. According to Taiwan’s Central News Agency, the PayPass-enabled card will be unveiled at a joint news conference hosted by […]

Star One Credit Union, the ninth largest credit union in the U.S., has begun offering Tyfone’s mobile financial services to its 89,000 members worldwide. Star One members can now access mobile banking services, such as balance check, account history review, and funds transfers, as well as mobile ID authentication and NFC contactless payment technology. According […]

Qatar National Bank (QNB) is encouraging its customers to use its new Tap and Pay NFC payment solution by offering redeemable cash bonuses. Customers who apply for a Tap and Pay product, which can be either a SIM card for an NFC-enabled mobile phone or a sticker, will receive two cash bonuses: one upon activating […]

Merchant Warehouse has unveiled Genius, a payment acceptance solution designed to handle every available payment type on one counter-top device. Slated to launch this fall, the Genius Customer Engagement Platform integrates all types of mobile payments, including NFC, QR codes and mobile wallets as well as loyalty, gifting and rewards programs. Genius also accepts card […]

STMicroelectronics has partnered with Wasion Group, a China-based supplier of energy-metering technology, to introduce NFC-enabled power meters to the residents of ChongQing, China. The new meters, which integrate NFC technology from ST, enables users to pay their electricity bills with a tap of an NFC phone. According to ST, the data is transmitted from the […]

Participants of a recent NFC payments trial in New Zealand have given the service overwhelming positive reviews, with 100% reporting a positive experience and 97% saying they will likely use the service again in the future. The four-month trial, conducted by Bank of New Zealand (BNZ), Vodafone, Visa and Paymark, saw participants using NFC-enabled mobile […]

Samsung has introduced a new line NFC tags that users can program to perform ordinary tasks on their mobile phone. Samsung’s TecTile tags, along with their corresponding TecTile mobile app, can be used to launch a particular mobile app, set an alarm, turn on/off Bluetooth or WiFi, make a call, update a Facebook status and […]

NXP Semiconductors and security specialist Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) have singed an agreement enabling G&D to integrate NXP’s Mifare technology into its portfolio of secure SIM products. Per the agreement, G&D can now offer Mifare-enabled SIM products to mobile network operators, enabling the deployment of NFC mobile ticketing solutions throughout Mifare’s global contactless infrastructure. According […]

Some 300,000 contactless payment terminals have been installed throughout France, but only 5,000 have been activated so far, according to French mobile operator SFR. The operator reports that merchants are having a difficult time buying the necessary equipment, upgrading software and paying for installation of the NFC-enabled equipment. Despite slow adoption on the merchant end, […]