Proxama Blog

Beyond Payment: What NFC can do for travel

Going beyond payment, Proxama's Chief Exec, Neil Garner will be presenting at this year's Travel 2020 event. Neil will review what's been happening with NFC within the transport sector and explore the direction in which the technology is heading. Having only last month spoken to Passport magazine about how NFC can be used at airports, Neil will now present on how the technology can revolutionise travel and ticketing. 

The presentation will highlight some of the key success stories of NFC pilots in the UK and around the world. With the UK government becoming increasingly certain that NFC has the potential to transform the daily commute, they are commisioning projects which utilise the technology. Neil will speak about what has happened, what the future holds and what needs to happen now to get us there. He'll highlight the importance of travel cards being incorporated into mobile wallets and its simplicity over traditional ticketing. He'll also explore the possibilities if the transport indusry not only uses NFC for access but also for advertising, allowing users to retrieve travel offers from NFC posters, store them in mobile wallets, and redeem them at terminal gates.

To attend Neil's presentation and others from industry experts, visit the Travel 2020 website.

Read full article

Tagged with

0 Comments. Posted by Chantal 28 October 2011

Not quite fifth generation

We waited with bated breath as Tim Cook unveiled the iPhone... 4S?

At least we can say that keeping up with Apple news hasn't been boring. They've been in the habit of surprising us of late and yesterday was no exception. The news that the iPhone 4S doesn't have NFC was disappointing but not a complete shock. Perhaps taking a step back on this one won't be such a bad idea. Waiting to see how other mobile phone companies utilise NFC should allow Apple an insight into the technology in exchange for minimal risk. They have their hardcore iPhone fanatics who will certainly be willing to wait.

There are plenty of other manufacturers happy to make a commitment to NFC while Apple watch quietly from the sidelines. Nokia have promised to include the technology in all of their future smartphones, starting with the C7 which was released earlier this year. Google's recently announced NFC mobile wallet is evidence of their faith in the technology, and RIM proudly announced that future Blackberry devices will be NFC-enabled. Other big names climbing into bed with the technology include Samsung, HTC, LG, Sony Ericcson and Motorala. With all that choice, we don't need Apple just yet. And let's face it, they did have a very poor camera for a long time... at least they've managed to fix something.

Read full article

Tagged with

0 Comments. Posted by Chantal 05 October 2011

Apple unveils iPhone 5

Today sees the day that Apple are expected to reveal what the fifth generation of iPhone has in store for us. Of course, the big question in the contactless world is:

Will the iPhone 5 come equipped with NFC?

Unfortunately we still have a few hours to wait. The presentation of the handset isn't due to begin until 6pm UK time, with the announcement of it's NFC capabilities expected shortly afterwards. Apple have succesffuly maintained a hum of rumour about their NFC plans over the past year, with both internal staff and external media offering up conflicting information on their technology roadmap. It's no surprise, therefore, that those of us involved with the NFC have been waiting with bated breath for this day to come.

Having recently beaten both Microsoft and IBM to become the highest ranking technology company (in terms of market value), Apple's influence on both consumers and industry insiders alike is stronger than ever. With a forceful push on consumer and brand education, we could see NFC grow even more quickly than expert predictions suggest. However, Apple's secretive attitude towards NFC could suggest one of two things:

1. They have been working on a phone with NFC capabilities incredibly advanced and user-friendly. They didn't want the risk of competitors picking up on their ideas and manipulating them into their own applications. 

2. They arrived at the NFC game a little late and over-cautious. Brands like Google and Nokia were already approaching touchdown with their first NFC handsets. Apple observed that in order to compete, they would need to get the NFC capabilities in their phone abolutely right. With the iPhone 5 already in development, they decided to put off introducing NFC into the handset, preferring to wait for the following iPhone 6.

It would be fantastic if the reason was the former: increased industry competition and therefore advances in the technology and consumer attitudes towards it would speed up immensely. That said, the lack of NFC in the iPhone 5 wouldn't be all bad. Apple have had a tendency to eye up new technologies and observe competitor behaviour before jumping on board. If this is the case, we can expect them to offer up even better NFC capabilities with future phones; phones that have learnt from the innovation, as well as the mistakes, of other leading handset manufacturers.

Only time will tell what the new iPhone 5 holds, but even if it doesn't come with NFC, there will be plenty of other handsets over 2011/12 that will make up for the lack.

Read full article

Tagged with

0 Comments. Posted by Chantal 04 October 2011