In an attempt to integrate NFC into digital devices apart from smart phones, Watchdata and Sony have joined hands and are looking to move a step further towards utilizing contactless payments.
The agreement between Watchdata, a smart card company based in Singapore, and Sony will result into Sony’s FeliCa technology and NFC technology being integrated into Watchdata’s SIMpass solutions in 2013. FeliCa technology is a secure contactless payment service used widely in Asia for events, ticketing and customer loyalty programs. Until July this year, 605 million FeliCa chips were deployed all over the world and have been incorporated into 202 million mobile devices and 403 million cards. Similarly, Watchdata’s SIMpass is a payment system which is supported by large establishments in China, making NFC payments possible for around 6 million East Asian users. SIMpass helps eliminate the need to incorporate additional hardware upon the addition of an antenna to a secure SIM card.
As stated by Mario Manabe, the senior GM of the FeliCa at Sony, the electronics giant is looking at boosting the effective security and performance of FeliCa through NFC. Following their agreement with Watchdata, Sony will be able to incorporate FeliCa technology into increasing number of handsets and subsequently expand their presence in the global market. The agreement is also expected to lead to an expansion in the number of NFC payments made through mobile phones since Sony will be pushing NFC technology through their Xperia line of Android smartphones.
Mobile payments are expected to explode over the coming decade as more and more users over the world acquire smartphones. This industry is still in its nascent stages, with Square being the biggest mobile payment solutions provider. Verifone’s Sail, a Square competitor, recently decided to withdraw from the mobile payments market, citing unprofitability. NFC is touted to the answer to easy and convenient mobile transactions since it relies on in-built technology in devices rather than attached external hardware interfaces. With mobile transactions set to grow exponentially, let’s hope this Sony-Watchdog collaboration will land State-side in the near future.
