Category: NFC Technology

The debit and mobile payments pilot program has now begun at a Canadian location.

McDonald’s is making mobile commerce news headlines with its brand new NFC technology based transaction system, which is being introduced on a trial basis at a Canadian restaurant location.

This would allow customers of the fast food giant to be able to pay for their meals using smartphones.

The NFC technology system is being provided by Interact Flash, a contactless solution from the Interac Association. It allows people to use their enabled debit cards and smartphones to tap-to-pay for their purchases. This functionality is currently limited only to certain specific cards and devices.

Also part of this NFC technology payments partnership is RBC Royal Bank, through their mobile app.

RBC has integrated the NFC technology into their application which can be downloaded and used through BlackBerry smartphones that are enabled with a near field communication chip. Together, RBC and Interac have made it possible for McDonald’s to offer these mobile payments to its customers.

According to Interac, this is the first time in Canada – as well as the only one currently operating – that contactless debit and mobile payments are accepted through NFC technology. The president and CEO of Acxsys Corporation and the Interac Association, Mark O’Connell, said that “This achievement in mobile debit innovation helps solidify our role in the mobile payments space in Canada.”

He also added that it will soon be possible for people in Canada to be able to use their smartphones to “pay with Interac Flash quickly, conveniently and securely” when they are making their typical purchases in stores and restaurants. He explained that this will bring additional value for consumers, but also for partner financial institutions and for the merchants, themselves.

The Interac Association debit card and payments services currently offers funds access to people in Canada at approximately 60,000 different cash points, as well as 766,000 point of sale terminals country wide. They have already led the way in the country for online debit payments and intend to use NFC technology to help to ensure a position as a leader in mobile payments, as well.

Mobile commerce is making strong progress

The mobile commerce market is strong and growing at a rapid pace, according to a new report from Mobile Commerce World and InfortmationWeek. The report, titled “Mobile Commerce: State of the Market,” highlights the trends that exist in this burgeoning industry that are contributing to the growth it is experiencing. Of these trends, the “bring your own device” (BYOD) phenomenon is very prominent. This trend accounts for consumers bringing their mobile devices to stores and other locations in order to participate in mobile commerce or shop for products online using their smartphones are tablets.

Companies promote mobile commerce applications internally

The report shows that approximately 41% of executives from large companies polled by InformationWeek have deployed mobile commerce applications internally, encouraging employments to make mobile payments for products they are interested in. Approximately 29% of companies have limited deployment of such applications. Companies are also promoting websites optimized for use on mobile devices over traditional websites that can be viewed from a PC or laptop.

Cloud-based payments may be adequate replacement for NFC solutions

The report also highlights the growing popularity of cloud-based mobile commerce. Mobile commerce applications that are connected to a cloud network are considered more accessible than applications and platforms that rely on NFC technology. While NFC has long been a staple for mobile commerce, its availability is somewhat low, making mobile commerce more exclusive and less available to a wide range of consumers. The report shows that NFC offers numerous benefits to the world of mobile commerce and cloud-based solutions may not serve as adequate replacements for the technology, only alternatives.

Mobile banking becoming more popular

Beyond payments, other forms of mobile commerce as also gaining traction, namely mobile banking. Consumers are becoming more apt to use their mobile devices to manage their bank accounts and finances. Research shows that approximately 46% of U.S. bank holders use their smartphones or tablets to access and manage their accounts.