Telefónica Deutschland to Launch NFC Pilot (Jan. 22, 2013)
Jan. 22, 2013
Munich-based Telefónica Deutschland in mid-February plans to enable P2P funds transfers between its mobile phone service subscribers along with a new NFC pilot that will launch at the same time in Germany. The effort grew out of the mpass mobile wallet service, announced last year as a joint venture between Telefónica Germany, Telekom and Vodafone. Using the “mpass O2 Wallet Card,” Telefónica customers with smartphones will be able transfer funds to one another using only another subscriber’s mobile phone number, Telefónica says. Participants may download the wallet to phones with Android or iOS operating systems. Earlier this year Telefónica introduced mobile contactless stickers that enable customers to make contactless payments at participating retailers.
Telefónica subscribers with a Samsung Galaxy SIII or Galaxy Ace 2 phone who volunteer to take part in the NFC pilot, also beginning next month, will receive an “NFC Pack,” which includes an NFC-based SIM card that will turn their phones into contactless payment devices, Telefónica said. Over the course of the next year, Telefónica plans to expand its wallet service to include additional applications and functions that will link it to other payment cards, vouchers and loyalty schemes. “The first bank will be shortly joining the wallet scheme, allowing the integration of a digitalized credit card,” said Telefónica.
