The GSM Association (GSMA), Samsung Electronics, Telefónica and Visa, together with Giesecke & Devrient, Ingenico, mobile data management firm ITN International, and La Caixa, have announced the “arrival” of contactless mobile payments, as the companies unveiled the result of months of collaboration and brought the first ever SIM-based NFC payments pilot to Mobile World Congress.
The participating companies have provided more than 400 NFC handsets to guests for use at the Congress. The Samsung Star NFC handsets contain Telefónica SIM cards from O2, pre-loaded with €60 airtime credit, as well as a La Caixa Visa Mobile Payment Application. Participants can use their NFC phones to pay for food and drink up to a value of €75 at over 30 merchant locations around the Congress.
“It is a fantastic achievement to bring a full payment trial to Mobile World Congress and a testament to the hard work of the partners that this cross-industry collaboration has worked so well,” says GSMA Chief Marketing Officer, Michael O’Hara. “Mobile operators have been requesting SIM-based NFC handsets for some time now, and it’s great to see such progress in this area. Now that the handsets are coming, we can expect to see a number of commercial launches of mobile SIM-based NFC services this year.”
Participants in the trial will be able to buy food and drink, simply by holding their Samsung NFC mobile phone against the contactless terminal at the participating merchants to pay for purchases under €10. Purchases above €10 require a passcode which the participant keys into the handset before presenting it to the terminal. The transactions are authorised online, with funds deducted from a La Caixa Visa account.
The partners have worked to bring the NFC experience to Mobile World Congress with the intention of raising awareness of the technology in anticipation of the commercial launch of these SIM-based handsets in the very near future. As more of the SIM-based handsets become commercially available it will help trigger global adoption and rollout of mobile NFC, the companies believe.
The participating companies have provided more than 400 NFC handsets to guests for use at the Congress. The Samsung Star NFC handsets contain Telefónica SIM cards from O2, pre-loaded with €60 airtime credit, as well as a La Caixa Visa Mobile Payment Application. Participants can use their NFC phones to pay for food and drink up to a value of €75 at over 30 merchant locations around the Congress.
“It is a fantastic achievement to bring a full payment trial to Mobile World Congress and a testament to the hard work of the partners that this cross-industry collaboration has worked so well,” says GSMA Chief Marketing Officer, Michael O’Hara. “Mobile operators have been requesting SIM-based NFC handsets for some time now, and it’s great to see such progress in this area. Now that the handsets are coming, we can expect to see a number of commercial launches of mobile SIM-based NFC services this year.”
Participants in the trial will be able to buy food and drink, simply by holding their Samsung NFC mobile phone against the contactless terminal at the participating merchants to pay for purchases under €10. Purchases above €10 require a passcode which the participant keys into the handset before presenting it to the terminal. The transactions are authorised online, with funds deducted from a La Caixa Visa account.
The partners have worked to bring the NFC experience to Mobile World Congress with the intention of raising awareness of the technology in anticipation of the commercial launch of these SIM-based handsets in the very near future. As more of the SIM-based handsets become commercially available it will help trigger global adoption and rollout of mobile NFC, the companies believe.
Recent Comments