Tag: nfc mobile payments

NFC technology making its way into Romania

| June 12, 2013

Seamless, a company from Sweden, has brought the new mobile payments tech to the country.

Swedish mobile payments firm, Seamless, has just partnered with Garanti Bank out of Turkey in order to bring a new system to Romania based on QR codes and NFC technology.

This will allow Seamless to launch its SEQR NFC and QR code based payments in the Romanian marketplace.

The Seamless mobile payments system allows users to complete transactions by waving their enabled smartphones over a reader device, or by scanning QR codes. These NFC technology and QR code based options will become available within the next few weeks, according to the companies.

Both QR codes and NFC technology will be offered in order to ensure compatibility with devices.

Romania NFC Technology and QR CodesAccording to Peter Fredell, the Seamless CEO, the company is offering systems using both NFC technology and QR code scans when taking the first steps into markets. It also stated that it has been running various pilot programs for the last half year in the country. Fredell also used the word “interesting” to describe the Romanian market, and that it was the Garanti Bank that approached them about entering into the market in Romania for the first time.

At the moment, Romanians don’t use credit cards very heavily. In fact, 79 percent of transactions are currently made in cash. The belief, said Fredell, is that this indicates that there is far greater potential for NFC technology mobile payments in this type of market than there is in Western European countries where there is a much higher use of credit cards. He also stated that it is the banks that are introducing the cashless systems and that are among the primary drivers of this type of change This will help to decrease the cash handling costs within the country, should it be as successful as they hope.

Seamless is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweeden, and is a global mobile payments company. It currently operates in over 30 countries worldwide. This organization focuses on mobile payments and prepaid top-up services for distributors, mobile operators, consumers, and retailers. It will be offering its services with Garanti Bank through NFC technology in Romania for the first time.

NFC technology patent boosts Apple mobile payments speculations

| June 11, 2013

Though the device manufacturer is always surrounded by rumors, this is the very latest making the rounds.

One of the most common questions surrounding both NFC technology and mobile payments alike have to do with when Apple will add its name to the competition and how it will go about doing that.

Nothing sparks the rumors more than the filing of a patent, which the iPhone manufacturer has just done.

This most recent patent application was noticed by Apple Insider and has generated dozens of speculations regarding the plans that the company will have for the technology. The patent, which was filed earlier in 2013 but was only just noticed by the public, is called “Method and System for Managing Credits via a Mobile Device,” which doesn’t leave too much mystery as to what how its technology would be used.

The description could be for the use of NFC technology for a system that it describes for mobile payments.

NFC Technology - AppleThe filing details a system that brings digital currency forward in the form of coupons or tokens that have an assigned monetary value. These could be stored within a mobile payments wallet in the cloud so that it can be used in a number of different possible ways. This includes purchases that are made in brick and mortar shops, at online stores, or to pay for the wireless services for the device.

The description of the system suggests that there would be a way for users to receive these tokens through participation in third party advertisements, which suggests that brands could use the service in order to connect with consumers and then reward them for viewing or interacting with forms of marketing content.

It is not yet entirely clear how Apple intends to use this patented service. It does mention a number of different types of mobile payments methods from NFC technology to peer to peer, and even direct carrier billing. That said, this remains only a patent application, which means that while Apple would hold its rights, it is not in any way obligated to actually use them in a launch that it is planning.