Tag: near field communication

The country has started accepting these smartphone based transactions at certain locations.

PVR Cinemas in India have just announced that they have now rolled out the very first NFC technology based mobile payments system within India.

This launch was designed to occur simultaneously with the availability of the new BlackBerry 10 platform.

The latest BlackBerry 10 devices are NFC technology enabled, which means that consumers will be able to make the choice from among a larger number of smartphones with near field communication capabilities. Now, PVR Cinemas has given them a specific reason to desire this state of the art tech, which is because it will give them a greater number of mobile payments opportunities.

The chain of movie theaters first thought they would used the NFC technology for watching trailers.

However, it soon changed its mind and added NFC technology based mobile payments to its sights – and then to its app – so that consumers would have the ability to purchase tickets and refreshments through the use of BlackBerry 10 (BB10) smartphones while at the cinema locations.

The hope is that the app will become the heart of a PVR Cinemas loyalty program for its customers. That said, as of yet, it is available only to consumers who own a BB10 based Z10 device. That said, the cinema will be expanding this compatibility range in May when it will be releasing Android, iOS, and other platform versions of its app, including those based on older BlackBerry operating systems.

At the moment, the NFC technology payments can be made only through the use of a prepaid account. As of yet, debit and credit cards are not compatible with the app. Moreover, it has been released in only a few of the total number of PVR Cinema locations. The initial roll out included 15 of the most popular cinema locations of the chain. Depending on its success, many are expecting that the mobile payments will also become available in additional locations over time, particularly as the other versions of the app are released so that it can be used by a much broader number of consumers.

Rumors about the next Apple smartphone are flying and they include a number of additions.

The latest predictions about the iPhone 5S have been claiming that Apple will finally be including NFC technology in its device, and that it will be combined with a fingerprint reader for added mobile security.

This new pair of features could allow Apple to support payments with a great deal of added security.

Neither the rumors about the inclusion of NFC technology or of the fingerprint reader are new, but they are becoming increasingly prevalent in the predictions for the iPhone 5S. Both of those features had been predicted for the iPhone 5 release, but it looked as though the manufacturer was seeking further development before they were to be included in a release.

NFC technology has been long awaited from Apple mobile devices

According to Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst from KGI, it is expected that the fingerprint reader will be built directly into the newest device’s home button. In addition to this prediction, the latest rumor from China, through Macotakara, has said that it is also the manufacturer’s intention to enable the iPhone 5S with NFC technology – a feature that was notably lacking from their last smartphone release.

This would allow the new smartphone to support mobile payments at any of the growing number of retailers and merchants that are already supporting mobile payments based on NFC technology. The security for the use of that type of transaction could be heightened if combined with the use of the fingerprint reader under the device home button.

In 2012, Apple purchased Authentec for $356 million, which would allow the company to add fingerprint reading to its devices for greater security levels. Authentec had already established itself as an expert in mobile biometric security even before it was acquired.

As security has been a considerable barrier to the use of mobile payments by consumers, the addition of the combination of the fingerprint reading with the NFC technology might make the difference in allowing consumers to feel more comfortable and secure in using their devices in place of a loyalty, credit or debit card for making a purchase while shopping in store.