Disqus
We’ve always known that mobile payments would some day come to mobile devices and would shortly thereafter become the dominant form of payment, the question has been when? Today the GSMA, the folks responsible for making sure that the GSM standard works and is interoperable among the roughly 800 operators around the world using the technology, have announced that 45 operators are backing SIM based NFC “solutions and services”. Now what exactly does that mean? Similar to how your credit card can be used in nearly anything that reads magnetic stripes, your SIM card will hold all your credentials and a phone’s NFC chip will then be able to talk with said SIM card and let you do things like pay for your morning cup of coffee or get on the bus to work.
Unlike Google Wallet, which works independent of your operator, SIM based NFC puts the control in operator’s hands. This can either be a good or a bad thing, all we know is that it’s too early to tell. As convenient as it may sound to have our purchasing power tied to a web service, the security of needing a physical device (the SIM card) is much more practical when thinking about controlling access. Expect to hear more about SIM based NFC services when ISIS launches in America in mid 2012.
On a personal note, I’m excited that Elisa is also among the 45 operators listed. They’re my operator of choice in Finland.
[Full list of operators: América Móvil, AT&T, AVEA, Axiata, AXIS, Bharti Airtel, Bouygues Telecom, CSL, Deutsche Telekom, Elisa Corporation, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company PJSC (du), Etisalat, Everything Everywhere, Globe Telecom, KPN, KT Corporation, Maxis, Mobily, MTS, Orange, Proximus, Qtel Group, Rogers Communications, Saudi Telecom Company (STC), SFR, SK Telecom, Smart, SOFTBANK MOBILE, Telecom Italia, Telecom New Zealand, Telecom Slovenije, Telefónica, Telekom Austria Group, Telenor, TeliaSonera, Telus, TMN, Turkcell, Verizon, VimpelCom, VIVA Bahrain and Vodafone Group. Additionally, ISIS, the organisation formed by AT&T Mobility, T-Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless.]
[Via: Phone Scoop]
About The Author
Stefan Constantinescu
Stefan Constantinescu (@WhatTheBit on Twitter) has loved technology since as far back as he can remember. It started with computers, but in the past few years his passion has turned to mobile devices. As a mobile phone enthusiast who lives and breathes devices that connect to the internet, he knows he is not alone with this radical fascination of all things wireless. He is strongly opinionated and enjoys a good debate so leave comments in his posts and he’ll get back to you! Stefan began blogging as a hobby in the fall of 2006 and joined IntoMobile in the summer of 2007. Later he got a job at Nokia in March 2008, but as of June 2009 he has rejoined the IntoMobile team. He is currently based out of Helsinki, Finland.
