First Data Corp. has announced plans to offer mobile payments through a partnership with Tyfone, a provider of mobile contactless payment and secure mobility solutions.
According to a news release from First Data, the collaboration is expected to provide SideTap micro secure digital (MicroSD) memory cards equipped with Tyfone's patented technologies, ultimately allowing most mobile phones with memory slots to be transformed into mobile contactless-payment devices.
First Data will provide merchants and FIs with Tyfone's patented SideTap secure memory card and u4ia ("euphoria") mobility platform for over-the-air life-cycle management.
Unlike solutions that are tied to specific merchants or financial institutions, the MicroSD card works like an actual mobile "wallet." The card can contain financial information and secure identification from multiple sources, such as specific retailers or financial institutions in open- and closed-loop scenarios. The SideTap card's onboard controller manages over-the-air access in conjunction with the u4ia mobility platform. SideTap is touted for its full expandability, which allows consumers to add new payment and identity options at their leisure. The SideTap card can retain memory card functions, so consumers can continue to utilize the card as they normally would, to store photos, videos, music, documents or other files. An embedded SmartMX security chip from NXP Semiconductors is safeguarding all transactions operated on the MicroSD card. "The move to contactless payments is gaining traction, and First Data continues to play a pivotal role in the development of this evolving technology. Consumers have a strong preference for such technology and merchants are using contactless payments to reduce waiting times, increase customer loyalty, and boost sales," said Dom Morea, First Data division manager of Mobile Commerce Solutions. "First Data chose Tyfone's SideTap Memory Card because it best serves the needs of consumers who want to use contactless payment options with over the air access, but still want to retain the memory card functionality of their MicroSD card. We are excited to partner with Tyfone and bring this technology to consumers in the second half of 2010." Over the next two to three years, analysts forecast contactless payment transactions via MicroSD technology will be used by more than 20 million people in North America. According to a September 2009 forecast by Juniper Research, near-field communications contactless payment global gross transaction value is expected to exceed $30 billion by 2012.
