Near Field Communications Handsets and Tags, NFC Pilots and Projects

Apple patents NFC mobile ticketing app

Friday, April 16, 2010

Apple has filed a patent for a new mobile app that would allow users to purchase, use and store event tickets via iPhone, according to crunchgear.com.

The NFC-enabled “Concert Ticket +” can potentially be used for any number of events, including sporting events, amusement parks and, of course, concerts.


The app’s NFC interface would enable a user’s iPhone to communicate with other iPhones or various NFC enabled devices and RFID tags, meaning that future tickets could be bought contactlessly at kiosks and turnstiles.

Concert Ticket + could also allow for peer-to-peer transfer of tickets, as well as allow companies to target the ticket purchaser with live recordings, exclusive content and vouchers for concert refreshments.

Read more here[end] 

On Track Innovations has received a U.S. patent for adding contactless capability to existing mobile handsets through contactless SIM technology.

U.S. Patent No. 8,090,407, aka “Contactless Smart SIM,” covers the capabilities necessary to turn existing mobile handsets into NFC-enabled devices through the use of a SIM card and a specifically designed antenna, all while keeping the phone and operating system “fully agnostic,” says OTI.

read more »

Ed McLaughlin, MasterCard’s head of Emerging Payments, has some good news for those waiting on NFC-enabled phones for contactless payments.

In an interview with Fast Company, McLaughlin said that he didn’t know of a handset maker who wasn’t working on integrating support for PayPass contactless payments.

read more »

MTN Irancell, one of Iran’s mobile operators, has teamed up with Etick Pars Intelligent Technologies and Bank Pasargad to develop a mobile wallet solution for the Iranian Market.

read more »

Google has acquired 188 patents and 29 patents pending from IBM, some of which concern NFC technology, reports ZDNet.

Adding to the 2,053 IBM patents already turned over to Google in the past year, these new patents cover databases, mobile phones, server infrastructure, wireless telephone systems, NFC and other patents that may relate to Google’s Android mobile operating system.

read more »

PayPal has announced that it will launch its first-ever pilot of NFC retail payments in Sweden for the holidays, according to Mobile Payments Today.

The company has partnered with Swedish mobile banking and payments provider Accumulate to deliver PayPal Instore, a new mobile payments app for Apple and Android smart phones.

read more »

Visa Europe has announced that NFC-enabled smart phones from Samsung, LG and Research In Motion have been certified for use with Visa payWave, Visa’s mobile application for payments at the point-of-sale.

read more »