The GSM Association has announced that 45 of the world’s leading mobile operators have committed to supporting and implementing SIM-based NFC services.
Chief among these companies are China Mobile and China Unicom, which account for nearly 800 million subscribers throughout China. Other major operators include Deutsche Telekom, KT Corporation, Orange, SK Telecom, Telefónica, Telecom Italia, Turkcell, Verizon, and Vodafone. Click here for a full list.
ISIS, the organization formed by AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon to build a nationwide mobile commerce network in the U.S., has also announced its support for SIM-based NFC.
“Clearly the momentum behind SIM-based NFC is growing rapidly, particularly with leading operators China Mobile and China Unicom supporting NFC services secured by the SIM card,” said Franco Bernabè, chairman of the GSMA and CEO of Telecom Italia Group.
The GSMA has also published a new set of handset and SIM specifications that define common handset application programming interfaces (APIs) to support NFC services. According to GSMA, these specifications will create a common framework for implementation and interoperability that will accelerate the global deployment of NFC.
“With the increasing deployment of commercial SIM-based NFC services in a range of markets worldwide, it is critical to embrace common standards that will promote the global interoperability of services and accelerate time-to-market,” said Anne Bouverot, director general of GSMA.
According to research firm Strategy Analytics, nearly 1.5 billion SIM-based handsets will have been sold worldwide between 2010 and 2016, supporting transactions of more than $50 billion globally over the same period. ![[end]](/resources/bullet/nfcnews-4.gif)
