In an effort to increase its offerings in the mobile payments market, Gemalto has acquired NXP’s mobile software development unit in Sophia Antipolis, France. The research and development team of about 20 employees will continue to develop and support software for the MIFARE4Mobile specifications, Paul Beverly, president of Gemalto North America tells NFCNews. The specification […]

Wells Fargo has launched a new debit card for students, faculty and staff of Texas A&M University, College Station. The new Aggie Bucks Unlimited Gold Card enables cardholders to access their linked Wells Fargo checking accounts and use their cards anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted, either on- or off-campus or via the Internet. The […]

Sony has ushered in a brave new world of pay-per-view television payments options, at least for customers in Japan. The electronics giant has introduced an RFID-enabled television that enables the purchase of movies and other entertainment using electronic money. The new LCD HDTVs, part of Sony’s Bravia line, come in a variety of screen sizes. […]

Visa highlighted several overall trends in the payments industry, including the convergence of electronic payments and mobile phones, at a briefing in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Also mentioned were the continued growth of the internet as a payment channel, the expansion of electronic payments into new acceptance locations such as transit and vending machines and […]

By Andy Williams, Associate Editor How nice would it be to zip to the local market and whip out your automobile key to pay for your purchases? Or, use the same key along with a cell phone to locate your car that you parked a few hours ago in that massive shopping mall parking lot? […]

Pradonet Technology, a provider of security, identification, payment and authentication devices, has launched a FeliCa-enabled contactless handheld terminal, the ST4fx, that enables card reading anywhere. It is expected the new ST4fx will soon also support NFC functionality. Developed by Pradonet’s R&D division in Malaysia, the rugged portable handheld is durable enough for most weather conditions […]

Charismathics, a German software developer, has developed an application that will enable an Apple iPhone or the iPod Touch to be turned into a smart card for two-factor authentication, according to an InternetNews.com report. The application is in beta testing and may be available at the end of April for $9.99. With Charismathics’ iEnigma application […]

Informa Telecoms and Media, a London-based research company, is predicting that the day the cell phones replace wallets is drawing closer. Its latest forecast, Mobile Payments and Banking, predicts that by 2013 some 300 billion transactions totaling $860 billion will be made by mobile phone. Yet, in that same time frame, NFC will still only […]

Saudi Post, the official postal operator of Saudi Arabia, has announced a contract with Intermec Technologies Inc. to provide an RFID-enabled tracking solution for its mail delivery. The system, which updates a previous solution that used RFID components, will use Intermec’s CN3 mobile computers and IP30 handheld RFID readers. Saudi Post has invested heavily in […]

Malaysia-based Fonelabs has released its newest generation NFC handset that offers MIFARE compatibility. The low-cost phones can be used with most contactless transport applications and can support any financial application relying on smart cards. The X-series phones will be available next month. The X-Series will also provide single wire protocol compatibility using an NXP Semiconductors […]