The GSMA is pleased that the European Telecommunications Standards Institute has adopted the technical standards governing Mobile Near Field Communications (NFC) services supported by the Association and its members. The completion of the core of the technical standards removes a potential obstacle, enabling mobile operators to prepare for the rollout of contactless payment services and other applications that make use of this flexible short-range radio technology.

Last week, members of ETSI selected the software protocol to control communication between the handset’s NFC chip and the SIM card, completing the standards necessary for handset makers to begin production of NFC-enabled phones in large volumes.

As part of the GSMA’s Pay-Buy-Mobile initiative, 13 mobile operators are running, or preparing to run, trials of contactless mobile payment services that make use of NFC technology. These trials are the precursor to commercial services that will enable consumers to use their handsets to quickly, easily and securely pay for goods and services in shops, restaurants and train stations.

"ETSI's approval of the specification for a dedicated interface, or 'Host Controller Interface' (HCI), helps end uncertainty, complete the core mobile NFC standards and is an crucial milestone for the plans of the GSMA and its members to deploy contactless mobile payment services,” said Alex Sinclair, Chief Technology Officer of the GSMA. “The software protocol solution chosen by ETSI will make these new services easier to use by enabling consumers to access all the secure applications on their handset, no matter where they are stored, through one common interface."