NFC Rumors

Privacy goes Public: Sharing Privacy for a Discount First things first - let’s get a little public with this privacy issue, shall we? For most people privacy starts where personal freedom ends. Yet there are many more complexities to the word, from personal snooping to sharing data online. Our focus today - sharing data and privacy.

Merry Christmas (or whatever you celebrate) and an NFC New Year Our team over here at NFC Rumors want to take the opportunity to thank everyone who swings past the site and wish them a great holiday season. It has been our first year and we have grown massively during that time because of your support for what we do. Over this year we have met some really great people, had the opportunity to immerse ourselves in great innovation and have been supported by our visitors and the companies who have come to embody Near Field Communication.

Japan Mobile NFC Consortium adopts international NFC Forum standards NTT DoCoMo, KDDI and SoftBank have created the “Japan Mobile NFC Consortium” which will help the three carriers coordinate and adopt an international NFC standard as set forward by the NFC Forum.

Etick brings the NFC mobile wallet to Iranian consumers with Irancell NFC mobile wallet projects are taking off all over the Middle East, and Etick and Irancell are bringing some NFC goodness to Iranian consumers. Just in case you needed any more evidence that NFC mobile payments are gearing up to explode globally this next year, today we want to let you know about a project taking off in Iran.

UPM RFID sells NFC tag and RFID tag to SMARTRAC closes in Q1 2012 The news UPM RFID is selling its NFC tag and RFID inlay business to SMARTRAC hit early this morning. Since then, we have been wondering about the industry impacts this sale could have. SMARTRAC manufactures RFID inlays for electronic passports (e-passports) and contactless credit cards (e-payment) as well as for RFID transponders for public transportation applications.

Nexus S Ice Cream Sandwich update on hold, Christmas Android Beaming Star Wars fight dreams dashed If you are a Nexus S owner and were planning to use the NFC force this Christmas your hopes may have been dashed because Google has halted the Ice Cream Sandwich downloads for the time being. Well, you do still have NFC but not with some of the newer interfaces that Android Beam brings along for the ride in Ice Cream Sandwich.

Verifone takes an NFC stock beating, perhaps unfairly, due to unrealistic market expectations We all know who Verifone is if we are interested in NFC mobile wallets and NFC payments. They are undoubtedly the largest player in the NFC point-of-sale business globally, and they are involved in most NFC payment projects on some level in the very complex ecosystem. However, Verifone has recently taken a painful beating on its stock price, which we can see between December 5th, when it traded at $44 a share, to December 14th, when it had fallen to just $35 per share. Ouch!

Commonwealth Bank makes Kaching NFC mobile wallet official We already knew that Commonwealth Bank in Australia was trialling the Kaching NFC mobile wallet app for the iPhone, but the financial institution has now gone live with its app for all customers. You have to hand it to Australia, they struggled to find the value chain and ownership model for NFC just like the rest of the world, aside from perhaps Japan. There were endless, fruitless NFC mobile wallet trials too.

PayPal tests NFC mobile wallet at a couple of Swedish retailers We first reported in September about the PayPal NFC mobile wallet called PayPal Instore in Sweden, where the firm got together with startup Accumulate to test out some NFC retail therapy. PayPal have been vocally cautious about NFC payments, NFC mobile wallets and anything else with the “N” word involved.

Coke uses Clear Channel for NFC marketing campaign in Singapore Coca-Cola has launched an NFC marketing campaign in Singapore with ClearChannel that uses NFC stickers to interact with consumers’ NFC smartphones. The Coke campaign reputedly runs on Mobile Life!, which is ClearChannel’s NFC enabled network.

GSMA colludes with Mobile Network Operators over NFC mobile wallets, they will lose the battle for control The GSMA has released a document called the “NFC Handset APIs & Requirements”, which outlines their mandate to member mobile network operators globally on how NFC USIMs or UICC-based NFC services and secure elements should be treated. We were told by a GSMA executive at WIMA that the GSMA are always being accused of being an inside club for the mobile network operator community with little interest in consumer related issues, and this new document does little to dissuade anyone that this isn’t true.

CARTES North America to debate future of EMV and NFC payments The European CARTES was arguably one of the biggest shows for NFC this year along with WIMA and a couple of other events. However, CARTES North America is now gearing up to bring its expo and conference state side in March and one big thing that will be debated is the future of EMV and NFC payments.

Nokia CES Press event hints at NFC and maybe tablets Okay, the Nokia Press invitation just hit our inbox for CES hinting that the firm may well be unveiling some new devices that speak to the future of smart devices. Perhaps it is just fanciful thinking on our part, but we suspect that we may see some Windows Phone NFC devices. Espoo has also been rumored to be developing tablets, which could even turn out to be NFC tablets.

Eric Schmidt hints at Google Nexus NFC tablet mid 2012 It’s great when Eric Schmidt does an interview, he knows just how to let things slip, and in a recent interview with Italian newspaper, Corriere della Sera, he mentioned a previously unheard of Google Nexus tablet. He added that this tablet would be of the highest quality.

NFC tags market to be worth $300 million in next five years says ABI Research ABI Research has released a report that forecasts that NFC Smart Posters and mobile marketing could push the non-payment NFC tags market to a $300 million per year business by 2016. If you hang around the NFC industry for more than a nanosecond, you will soon become aware what a big deal NFC tags are. NFC tags are used in every non-payment, non-device iteration that NFC has to offer; including NFC stickers, NFC smart posters and even NFC stationary.

Google Wallet on Verizon Galaxy Nexus root free so it is safe to use! Over the weekend we let you know the clever devs over at XDA Developers had rooted and hacked Google Wallet on to the Verizon Galaxy Nexus. We also advised that Galaxy Nexus owners should hold off from hacking the Verizon Galaxy Nexus because rooting the device could expose some sensitive data that a thief could get hold of.

NFC Forum and Bluetooth SIG publish guide for NFC pairing to Bluetooth Something that has been sorely needed is a guide for developers to use NFC for Bluetooth pairing and the NFC Forum and Bluetooth SIG have got together to make that happen. It was just last week we wrote about the lack of NFC speakers on the market and one reason for that is many Bluetooth speaker manufacturers just haven’t considered NFC pairing as mainstream as yet.

GSM Nexus S gets Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade get your android beam on! On Friday, Google announced via its Android Twitter account that it is rolling out Android 4.0 or Ice Cream Sandwich to Nexus S owners. Well, GSM Nexus S owners anyway. There is no word yet on an Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade for the Nexus S 4G that is running on Sprint. We have heard about the update already hitting AT&T Nexus S phones OTA, but we are yet to hear of any others.

Google Wallet already hacked to work on Verizon Galaxy Nexus It has been a couple of days since the Galaxy Nexus has been launched on Verizon sans Google Wallet. Verizon is charging $299 for the latest Ice Cream Sandwich, NFC touting smartphone, and Amazon has already half priced it down to $149.99. The Free Press has written a letter to the FCC requesting that Verizon is investigated for not allowing Google Wallet on its network and for what the organization calls “blocking the app”.

A note to NFC firms attending CES with NFC products or services It’s nearly that time of year again when the whole of the tech industry gets together in Las Vegas for the ultimate show and tell session they like to call CES. NFC is expected to be on show everywhere delegates look this year.

San Francisco becomes the world’s largest NFC parking lot Ugh, parking in a city, fumbling for change and then realizing you are running out of time on the meter and running back to the car to add more coins is such a drag. It is, in fact, one of the problems to which NFC has a solution and that’s not new news.

UPM RFID & Waldemar Winckel offer NFC tags in Touch2go store Today Europeans have another place to buy NFC tags from after UPM RFID and Waldemar Winckel, one of Europe’s leading RFID label manufacturers and system integrators, have got together to provide NFC tags through the Touch2go e-commerce store.

Ice Cream Sandwich bug NFC tag NDEF formatting bug found A bug has been found in Android Ice Cream Sandwich that means a non-pre-formatted NFC tag isn’t being recognizable as a NDEF Formattable tag for Mifare Classic 1k, Ultralight or Ultralight C tag. The problem isn’t affecting MifareClassic and MifareUltralight NFC tags.

Within the space of a few hours the Samsung Galaxy Nexus for Verizon has lost half of its purchase price We knew the Samsung Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone wouldn’t last at the premium price of $299 for very long, but even we didn’t think its price would be cut in half within a few hours of launch on Verizon.

Seven barriers to the growth of NFC mobile payments? BillingViews today published a report / presentation called “The Seven Barriers to Mobile Payment Adoption” that primarily focuses on NFC payments and adds a dash of QR codes for good measure. BillingViews describes itself as “the global home for billing expertise and intelligence in the communications and media industries.” We can’t say we are feeling the report and disagree with it on a few levels. We do agree that there are barriers, we are just a little at odds with some of BilliingViews’ seven reasons.

Sonim ensures rent-a-cops get tricked out with a rugged NFC phone Sonim intends to bring some style and gadgetry to workforce management using its NFC XP3300 FORCE products. Let’s face it, being a security guard is hardly associated with James Bond type gadgets and usually a walkie-talkie and flash light are the tools of the trade.

Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone launched on Verizon finally Ah, what a relief to no longer have the need to speak about when Verizon will launch the Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone. It’s done, it has happened and it’s sans Google Wallet. For us, the Galaxy Nexus specifically on Verizon has lost its luster. But if you still have a penchant for your own slice of Ice Cream Sandwich, you can head over to the Verizon Wireless website or pop into your local store.

INSIDE Secure supplies Intel with NFC tech and secure elements Intel has selected INSIDE Secure to supply it with its NFC technology as it moves further into the Near Field Communication industry. In the last few months, Intel has come from being absent in NFC to looking like a main proponent of the nascent technology.

ViaForensics finds Google Wallet security vulnerability with a rooted Android NFC phone, Google plugs it tight within hours It was bound to happen that someone would find a vulnerability in an NFC mobile wallet, however, as exploits go the Google Wallet faired pretty well. ViaForensics took a rooted Android phone that we can only assume was a Nexus S and was able to gain access to database tables which revealed some arguably sensitive data. They found that databases weren’t properly flushed after cards were deleted from the Google Wallet.

Microsoft scooping up Nokia rumors resurface today as a bank advises its investors it will happen in the first half of 2012, either way looks good for NFC Interesting speculation started up again today suggesting that Microsoft and Nokia may be in talks to see whether they can carve out a deal which could possibly see Nokia selling its smartphone business. This isn’t the first time this rumor has circulated and last time was strongly refuted by Nokia. This time the rumor has emanated from Danske Bank, which is Denmark’s largest bank and claimed that Nokia will sell its smartphone division to Microsoft during the first half of 2012.

LG NFC smartphone dressed up in Prada hits the catwalk?LG Prada 3.0 NFC smartphone dressed up in accessories hits catwalk? Today LG and Prada unveiled the new LG Prada 3.0, which is a relatively well specified Android smartphone. However, Engadget is reporting that they have received leaked information that has let them know that the LG Prada 3.0 is an NFC smartphone.

The Consumer’s Perception: 5 Fundamental Rules of Engagement for NFC What initiates engagement more than a need to connect? A need for a positive review, an inquiry, a complaint or even a purchase. Specifically, what opportunities for engagement of the consumer is there for near field communication (NFC) and why is the ongoing perception so weak? Near field communication is quite a ways from being a household name, especially in North America.

Complaint filed by the Free Press with the FCC against Verizon for blocking Google Wallet Yesterday, freepress.net filed a complaint with the FCC against Verizon urging the Feds to investigate the “blocking” of Google Wallet on the Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone. Well, it was bound to happen that a consumer protection group would tackle an Isis MNO about treating data in different ways and challenging the FCC to uphold their newly established powers to stop this from happening.

Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone launches 15th Dec? We’re so over this! Bored of hearing the next projected date of when the Galaxy Nexus NFC smartphone will hit Verizon? We feel you.  It all seemed exciting and fun at the backend of October when Google made the announcement with Samsung, but the subject has since become one of torture.

NFC added to free Microsoft Tag platform boosts NFC marketing Microsoft Tag is one of those products that may have passed you by in the past. Today’s announcement that the firm will include NFC tag support in the app and web interface may have just let Microsoft Tag find its sea legs and become a relevant tool to be used by small businesses and marketers alike.

NFC, wine, logistics and consumers sounds like a great evening with a twist thanks to eProvenance and Near Field Solutions eProvenance and Near Field Solutions have got together and combined NFC, humidity sensors andwine together in a MacGyver style project to create a new value added service for consumers, and a tracking and environmental tool for the winery. NFChas more applications than any one person can imagine. We continue to be amazed and impressed with use cases and innovative projects that are finding new ways to use Near Field Communication with other sensors.

Rumors swirling about Google attempting to buy T-Mobile are doubtful but interesting The industry is a flutter with the prospect of the AT&T / T-Mobile acquisition failing. Many industry pundits are speculating about who might buy T-Mobile if AT&T is prevented from doing so. Dish Network’s name has been thrown in the hat and we have heard from a few of our sources that Google has also been in talks.

AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II rocking NFC after custom ROM As you may well know the AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II has dormant NFC capabilities. They are only dormant because AT&T has had NFC locked off at the software level and that has frustrated many NFC fans in the States. All because of Isis, yada yada yada… We knew custom ROMs were available, but we had never thought to write a post about it until some of the UPM RFID team let us know they had managed to enable NFC in their Samsung Galaxy S II on AT&T.

Tapit adds a global title to its Red Herring Award for NFC marketing It was in October  that Tapit took home a Red Herring award placing itself firmly within the top 100 tech firms in Asia for its NFC marketing exploits. Now Tapit has taken that title and boosted it up to a global level by receiving yet another Red Herring award for what the firm calls “the process of getting content to mobile phones.”

Sony and Interactive Health Technologies wants to make our kids fit with NFC monitors during PE at school Sony and Austin based Interactive Health Technologies have got together to help manage and promote fitness for kids while they are at school. We all know that America’s kids are getting bigger, with the childhood obesity concerns all over the place right now.

Isis to use Gemalto as its TSM for its NFC mobile wallet Okay everyone, brace for impact, we have an Isis post for you because the NFC joint venture made up from AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile has today announced it has picked Gemalto as their Trusted Service Manager.

Proxama scoops Cambridge Wireless start-up award for NFC work There are certain firms NFC Rumors keeps an extra special eye on and Proxama is in that group. It isn’t that other firms don’t have innovative ideas, but is rather the fact that Proxama is constantly challenged to come up with campaigns and developments for different sub categories of the NFC ecosystem such as NFC mobile wallets, NFC apps and NFC smartposters and ad campaigns.

NFC stocks? Welcome to the NFC funding paradox faced by startups NFC has faced a few paradoxes since its inception and NFC Stocks and NFC funding is just the latest iteration of some of the challenges Near Field Communication has faced in its rise to ubiquity. We have said it before and we will say it again, NFC has the ability and potential to change the way we do most things by bringing frictionless physical interactions and the web together for powerful information discovering and sensor integration in most products and services we use.

Nokia Windows Phone 7 NFC smartphones coming soon Many Nokia faithful fans have been waiting for the firm to add some NFC smartphones to their Windows Phone 7 offerings. We asked a few Nokia people whether they were coming while we were at WIMA and got some confirmation on the matter.