Payments - Wearable Payments Becoming Standard

I have an Apple Watch and have been using it to make payments for years now.  Starbucks, Dunkin, or using Apple Pay at various retailers who accept it through NFC.

Very cool and I always seem to get a reaction from the people around me too.

Well, this is slowly building up and becoming more common.

Here is a snippet from the piece:

It seems like only yesterday the industry first began mulling in-store, in-app and online payments via mobile devices. Now wearables, including smart watches, fitness trackers and other tags, introduce a whole new wrinkle in the space.

The concept of a wearable as a payment system is not new; Wearables enabled with payment capabilities in closed-loop scenarios, like Disney World's Magic Band or similar wearables associated with cruise ships or music festivals, accounted for 82% of wearable-device payments back in 2015. Visa also had a high-profile rollout of NFC payment-enabled bracelets during the 2016 Summer Olympics last year.

Here is the full story:

http://www.retaildive.com/news/study-wearable-payments-on-the-way-to-mainstream/447879/

Happy Reading

J.W. Gant

CurrentC by MCX to go Public mid-2015, plus Microsoft and PayPal News

News everywhere in the mobile payments space about CurrentC's plans though all of the stories seem to point back to MacWorld.  Here is one story:

http://www.mobilepaymentsinsider.com/2015/04/07/currentc-prepares-to-go-public-with-mid-2015-launch/

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Mobile payments service CurrentC will officially launch in the US over the next few months, adding further competition to the crowded mobile payments market.

Here is the MacWorld piece that appeared to break the story:

http://www.macworld.com/article/2906592/apple-pay-rival-currentc-coming-in-mid2015.html

Here is a snippet from that piece:

A small -scale trial began last year and CurrentC is currently being tested in several undisclosed markets around the U.S. However, its use is restricted to employees of member retailers, which include Walmart, 7-Eleven, Dunkin Donuts, Sears, Best Buy, Exxon Mobil and Gap.

Merchant Content Exchange (MCX), the operator of the service, plans to make it available to the public in mid 2015, but in a single market at first.

More news in the payments space has also come out from both Microsoft and PayPal.

Microsoft is working on some kind of 'Microsoft Pay':

http://arstechnica.com/business/2015/04/microsoft-payments-may-join-apple-android-samsung-in-pay-platforms/

UPDATE: Another story works to add to this report:
http://www.mobilepaymentsinsider.com/2015/04/10/microsoft-makes-another-mobile-payments-move/

PayPal is going to release a new wallet that will utilize NFC technology:

http://www.digitaltransactions.net/news/story/PayPal-Will-Include-NFC-Capability-in-the-Coming-Version-of-Its-Mobile-Wallet

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant 

Apple Pay vs. CurrentC

The news the last week or so has been pretty heavy on Apple Pay vs. CurrentC.  The media loves a good fight but why can't they live together?  Maybe not in the short term, but over a long enough timeline won't we see a number of ways to pay with your mobile device?  Don't we already have many ways to pay with our mobile device between LevelUp, PayPal, Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Apple Pay, Google Wallet, and CurrentC?

Some are already declaring winners and losers.  Who are they and what are they saying?

Here is Time.com with winners and losers:

http://time.com/3532199/apple-pay-winners-losers/

Here is a snippet from that piece:

But there’s another reason credit card companies are enthusiastic about Apple Pay: the alternative, CurrentC, could be pretty scary.CurrentC is a payment system mega retailers like Walmart and Best Buy are working on that could cut out credit card companies altogether. While Apple Pay leaves the traditional credit card system intact by simply moving it to your phone, analysts speculate that the CurrentC program will link payments through a network connected directly to your savings account. Voila: no middleman.

“If a technology comes along that’s focused on getting you to not use Visa, then that’s a competitor to us,” says Dill. The threat of CurrentC makes Apple Pay look more like a rickety lifeboat for the credit card companies than the super-fast motorboat Apple has promised.

Here is Karen Webster declaring CurrentC dead before it has even fully launched:

http://www.pymnts.com/news/2014/current-c-and-the-big-merchant-mess/#.VFpQADTF_9Y

Here is a snippet from that piece:

So, how does CurrentC to get out of this mess?

Well, I don’t think they do.

I believe that this is the beginning of a huge reboot at CurrentC and quite possibly its complete unraveling.

Karen comes across as at least a little naive in that piece.  Really, the merchants should yield all control of their interactions with the consumer?  Sounds like a recipe to go out of business to me.

At least one person is picking Google Wallet to win over Apple Pay, yes Google:

http://www.pymnts.com/in-depth/2014/peter-thiel-picks-google-over-apple-pay/#.VFo4MzTF_9Z

That isn't unreasonable thinking.  We've already seen payments via Google Wallet bump following the NFC news of Apple Pay.

The big-box retailer Target is in the news as an early supporter of CurrentC, running transactions now in Minnesota according to this piece:

http://www.startribune.com/business/281395391.html

Why are some merchants saying "No" to Apple Pay?  Here is a story on that:

http://blogs.wsj.com/totalreturn/2014/11/04/why-some-merchants-say-no-to-apple-pay/

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Industry observers say the reluctance of some merchants to embrace Apple Pay all comes down to one thing: fees. And consumers are likely to remain caught in the midst of this tug-of-war between credit-card networks and merchants for some time.

Here is a piece on Re/Code that quotes the CEO of MCX a bit:

http://recode.net/2014/11/04/what-are-the-anti-apple-pay-merchants-afraid-of/

Burger King is going with PayPal for their mobile payment option:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/burger-king-chooses-paypal-in-a-refutation-of-apple-pay

Want to understand a bit of the deal Apple Pay made?

http://www.pymnts.com/news/2014/inside-the-apple-pay-issuer-contracts/#.VFohWjTF_9Y

What about Starbucks?  Isn't this the most successful mobile payments mechanism in history, as opposed to Tim Cook's statement about Apple Pay?  Yes it is.

http://www.nbcnews.com/tech/gadgets/forget-apple-pay-master-mobile-payments-may-be-starbucks-n240091

Does this look like space likely to see some consolidation in the coming year or two?  Maybe.  However, it also looks like a space where more than one winner is going to come out on top.  Which ones will those be?

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE**  Just a bit more as this one lays out the story of the relationship Apple has forced on the banks and the issuers:
http://digitaltransactions.net/news/story/Issuers_-Apple-Pay-Pact-Assigns-Remarkable-Authority-to-Card-Networks-As-Well-As-Apple

**UPDATE #2** The CEO of MCX, Dekkers Davidson, is at Money2020 and had some comments:
http://www.digitaltransactions.net/news/story/MCX-Chief-Davidson-Strikes-Defiant-Tone-While-Touting-Benefits-of-CurrentC_s-Wallet

Here is a snippet from that piece:

...Davidson attributed much of the negative publicity about CurrentC to the efforts by the 80 merchants that control MCX to “challenge” a payments business that has largely left merchants on the sidelines. “Some have mocked us or laughed at us, some are attacking us,” he said. “That’s to be expected when you challenge the status quo.” Later in his remarks, he returned to this theme, saying, “If you’re going to change the status quo, you’ve got to challenge the status quo.”

The little engine that could?

Industry Response to Apple Pay

Well, they certainly created a buzz with Apple Pay.

Here is a good analysis of what Apple's move will do for mobile payments:

http://www.pymnts.com/in-depth/2014/it-took-an-apple/#.VBG4qMJdXVU

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Players in the payments space for years have talked about when the right moment will come when mobile payments finally will take off. And most people said when Apple entered the game, it will, given Apple’s tendency not to jump into willy-nilly notions of what might succeed only to disappoint its loyal following of tech-savvy consumers.

But while Apple finally made the move into payments on Tuesday (Sept. 9), it still will take time for the progress to be made. But, the pace may just be quicker now, executives from Chase and Chase Paymentech noted during a podcast interview this week with MPD CEO Karen Webster.

Next is a very true statement.  Apple just gave a huge give to credit card companies.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-isnt-disrupting-credit-card-111412294.html

Here is a snippet from that piece:

The announcement of Apple's new Apple Pay service marks another big gun — the biggest, probably — entering the mobile payments space. Those expecting Apple to disrupt the tri-opoly of MasterCard, Visa and American Express will be sorely disappointed. While tech startups in the mobile payments business talk frequently about replacing the traditional banking and financial services industry, Apple probably sees that as a fight that's simply not worth having.

Here is a very good write-up in the New York Times stating Apple is solving a problem that really isn't a problem:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/11/upshot/apple-pay-tries-to-solve-a-problem-that-really-isnt-a-problem.html?module=Search&mabReward=relbias%3Ar

Some retailers don't understand why NFC is the approach Apple has taken.  Why not use beacons instead?  I believe this move is more to support the market in China than the United States so this puzzlement makes sense.

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/lord-taylor-reexamines-nfc-following-apples-announcement

What does Apple Pay mean for retailers?

http://www.retailonlineintegration.com/article/what-apple-pay-means-retaiilers/1

Here are a few more:

Target: http://chainstoreage.com/article/target-extends-mobile-commerce-like2buy-instagram-and-apple-pay

FinExtra Article: http://www.finextra.com/news/fullstory.aspx?newsitemid=26433&topic=innovation

Mobile Payments Insider: http://www.mobilepaymentsinsider.com/2014/09/10/ditch-your-wallet-apple-unveils-nfc-mobile-payments-for-iphone-6-and-iwatch/

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Apple Signals Start of a New Era

Good Morning Everyone,

If you are in the mobile space, technology, payments, etc. then you were likely blown away yesterday.  Wow.  What a day.

I'm at the 2014 CTIA Super Mobility Week in Las Vegas this week but the biggest news came from Cupertino.  Apple doesn't need the world's largest conference on mobile products.  It just takes all the air out of the room with its own announcements and, as only Apple can do (for now), everyone is talking about Apple's products.

New Era

We have been hearing about "i-stuff" for many years now.  We've come to expect everything to be an "i-something".  No more.  Apple under Tim Cook has entered a new era and has signaled that in their product naming. We didn't get the iWatch yesterday.  Instead we were delivered the Apple Watch.  Also announced was Apple Pay. This is a new era as the tremendous lineup of new products showed and it has been signaled even further by the naming conventions used.  The iPhone has not seen such a radical change since its initial launch and this in itself is a huge departure from the previous era.  The new Apple Era has begun, and it looks pretty healthy so far.

By using the Apple logo in their naming they are tying everything much closer to their ownership and their ecosystem.  This works exceptionally well with Apple's move in to accessories.  Want that logo?  You'll have to pay for it.

So, what did Apple deliver yesterday.

Apple Pay

Payments have been a bit of a mess over the last decade or so as an aging infrastructure struggles to deliver newer, more modern and more secure, payments methods.  The average consumer in the U.S. doesn't see anything wrong with swiping a card and therefore isn't pushing for change.  Mobile payments has been viewed for many years as the next big thing but hasn't taken off.  NFC has been the de-facto standard for mobile pay but also hasn't taken off, partly because Apple refused to embrace it.  Has all of that changed now?  Maybe.

Here is an article on Apple Pay:

http://www.cnet.com/products/apple-pay-ios/

Apple has signed with a number of the larger banks, the issuers of credit cards, and the major credit card companies including American Express, MasterCard, and VISA.  Clearly this is a sustaining move by these companies.  They want the gravy train to continue in the new format.  This is not a revolutionary move by Apple or these companies.  Nor is it disruptive.  It is safe and comfortable and focused on luxury brands (though, McDonalds was listed explicitly by Apple).  These are all reasons why this might actually work.  I for one will by trying out Apple Pay with my new iPhone when it arrives.

Did I mention the Apple Watch will have NFC built in as well?  Thus the owners of older iPhones (apparently limited to 5 or 5S phones, nothing older) will also be able to use Apple Pay by getting an Apple Watch.

Apple Watch

Wearable devices is a category that has seen slow growth to-date but the biggest names have been entering this space for the last year or more including Samsung and Android Wear by Google.  Now Apple has joined in.

The price starts at $349 and likely will move up quite high for the gold version.  Details are sparse at the moment but this article has quite a bit:

http://www.cnet.com/products/apple-watch/

Clearly this will not be a huge seller after the initial wave of Apple fans has picked one up.  The price is just too steep for this to be an enormous seller, unless the consumer sees some value they can't already get from their iPhone or iPad.  Did I mention the Watch must be tethered to an iPhone?  That limits the market to the install base of iPhone owners and limits it further to only the newer phones.  Still, that is a large base so sales could be robust initially.  Will this have legs?

Finally, is the new set of iPhones.

iPhone 6 and 6 Plus

We get two new phones this year and bother are larger than any iPhone before it.  The expected size really has grown quite a bit since the launch of the iPhone in 2007.  Remember, back then the iPhone was considered to be HUGE.  The paradigm has changed thanks to the competition such as Samsung's devices and Apple has responded with its first Phablet.

The biggest news other than screen size is regarding the new camera and video capability.  This is a dramatic improvement.  For more information see this article:

http://www.cnet.com/products/apple-iphone-6/

What a day huh?  Does Apple have its mojo back?  Walking around the CTIA yesterday I overheard someone deriding Apple's announcement.  "They announced a watch?  So what?  We've been hearing about that for years now.  Surprise me please."  Interesting take.

The sum of the announcements, including U2's announcement releasing their new album for free on iTunes, really was quite big.  The new era of Apple has begun.  Will it be as meaningful as the last era?  Pretty hard to match that but they are off to a good start.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE** CNet has a story that speaks of the shift to a new era of Apple that echos what I wrote about above:
http://www.cnet.com/news/theres-no-i-in-apples-team-cook/

Apple Payments - NFC, Amex, MasterCard, and VISA?

Wow.

The rumor mill is certainly churning with anticipation building ahead of Apple's announcement in Cupertino on September 9.

The biggest news I'm hearing that doesn't concern a wearable device such as an iWatch regards the following (all rumors until Sept 9):

• The new iPhone will contain a NFC chip to enable payments in close proximity.
• Apple has signed a deal with VISA for mobile payments.
• Apple has signed a deal with both MasterCard and VISA for mobile payments.
• Apple has signed a deal with American Express for mobile payments.

Wow.

Pretty intense rumor mill regarding Apple finally embracing NFC technology, something I've been extremely skeptical of to date.  You can't just ignore a firestorm of rumors though so September 9 should be fun, as we expected it would be.

Here is one excellent article by Karen Webster worth reading if you follow mobile payments:

http://www.pymnts.com/news/2014/whos-on-your-2014-fantasy-payments-team/#.VAW2hcVdX9Z

The American Express rumor:

http://recode.net/2014/08/31/apple-9-9/

The MasterCard and VISA rumor:

http://www.paymentssource.com/news/emerging-payments/apple-said-to-team-up-with-visa-mastercard-on-iphone-wallet-3019019-1.html

How many days left until the event?  Once again Apple has succeeded in building interest for their product launch.  Seems to be a strong feed of information from the supply chain yet again but the main points may have nothing to do with the hardware this time.  That is an opportunity for Apple to regain some of its vaunted secrecy ahead of a product launch.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE** Good article here that lays out the entire story:
https://www.yahoo.com/tech/what-is-nfc-and-why-does-it-matter-for-the-iphone-6-96456683964.html?src=rss

**UPDATE #2** Another good article on this story stated merchants will decide whether or not Apple's foray in to payments will be successful.  True, unless consumer demand forces acceptance, a difficult trick to pull off.
http://blogs.forrester.com/denee_carrington/14-09-04-merchants_will_decide_the_fate_of_apples_mobile_wallet

News on Apple, Amazon, and NFC in China

Several news items or bits of information I find quite interesting.

First up is a story on Apple's Maps App in their iOS devices and the apparent internal problems inhibiting improvement.  Let this story stand as a warning against having too many cooks in the kitchen and a poor execution on vision.

http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/apple-maps-app-update-delayed/#!W0mBO

Next is a story about Amazon expanding its services offerings to include payments online, moving in to space currently held mostly by PayPal.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/09/us-amazon-com-payment-idUSKBN0EK0HW20140609?type=companyNews

Finally is a story about a Chinese Telecom that is moving on NFC adoption.  Could we see a backflow of demand as China begins using NFC and it flows back to the United States that could see inevitable adoption?  Or is NFC truly dead in the U.S.?

http://www.mobilepaymentsinsider.com/2014/06/10/china-telecom-selects-gemalto-for-commercial-launch-of-nfc-services/

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0117 EMV Adoption

Europe / Mastercard / VISA

EMV

What is it really?  A massive waste of money?  Yes.  It is also the new standard for payments that has already been mostly adopted in Europe and is now being force-fed upon U.S. merchants thanks to the security breach at Target last holiday season.

Here is Karen Webster on the subject:

http://www.pymnts.com/news/2014/is-the-emv-journey-worth-the-price/#.U35AWtJdU1I

Here is a snippet from that piece:

...if it’s going to take 5 (or more likely 10) years for ubiquity around a standard that’s already moving into middle age, aren’t we better off putting our collective energies into something that will enable the future right now – a future that isn’t tied to hardware like NFC is but enables any connected devices to interact with any other connected device?

She also states she is one of the few who still thinks Apple will not release NFC capability this year.  I'm still among the ranks of non-believers.  Here is that quote:

On the second point, having Apple come out and say that it will embrace NFC to enable payment at the point of sale would surely help ignite NFC payments. But this is where I scratch my head. I know that I am practically the only one in the world now that thinks that Apple isn’t likely to enable NFC for payment, given all of the rumors that are swirling around.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Apple iPhone Predictions

Rumors are swirling and supposed photos from the Apple supply chain are just beginning to come in to view.  The iPhone 6 is beginning to come in to focus, but it is only the beginning.

I'm not one to speculate on the nuances of every Apple release but one piece of prognostication has spurred my desire to post here.  An analyst is saying Apple will include Near Field Communication (NFC) hardware in the iPhone 6.

I think this is complete hogwash.

Here is the story in question, merely citing a well known analyst of Apple products so don't hold that against the website:

http://techcrunch.com/2014/04/11/apple-could-finally-adopt-nfc-on-iphone

You get the main point of the story just from the URL.  That analyst is well known because he "has a solid track record of actually getting things right."

Here is another story that speaks to Google's moves on payments and how it has withdrawn from NFC:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/google-mobile-payments

Here is a pretty good story that tries to predict what Apple is up to in payments:

http://www.mobilepaymentstoday.com/article/230545/What-is-Apple-up-to-in-payments

With BLE having been such a strong play by Apple, and what I've seen companies do with those 'beacons' to make them emulate near field communications, I predict Apple has already made its play in this space and it is BLE.

NFC is dead.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

NFC Takes Another Blow

That is the exact headline of one story today that is worth taking a look at.

"NFC Takes Another Blow"

Here is the story:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/nfc-takes-another-blow-as-7-eleven-best-buy-shut-it-down

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Best Buy and 7-Eleven have announced that they will be shutting down their near-field communications capabilities in their retail locations, pointing to further struggles for NFC-based mobile payments.

Here is another story that shows ISIS apparently imploding as the CTO goes public with a lot of static on the question of adoption:

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9247016/Isis_CTO_accuses_retailers_of_turning_off_NFC_and_smartcard_payment_tech

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Efforts to push mobile payments using NFC-ready smartphones have gone through a series of fits and starts in the past three years in the U.S., but have had little effect on how Americans make purchases.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Apple iWallet Patent

This could eventually become big news.

On January 16, 2014, the US Patent & Trademark Office published a patent application from Apple that reveals a secure iWallet system that goes beyond NFC to include new Air Interfaces including a form of Bluetooth, such as iBeacon. 

The entire story can be read at Patently Apple:

http://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2014/01/apple-patent-reveals-secure-iwallet-system-with-ibeacon.html

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE**
The news continues to come out regarding Apple and a possible foray in to payments.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2429943,00.asp

This has been followed by articles that elaborate a bit such as this one:
http://www.digitaltransactions.net/news/story/4487

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Having been for years at the center of speculation on the matter, Apple Inc. may finally be readying a foray into mobile payments, according to news reports over the weekend.

...

Finally, for a move into physical stores, Apple could rely on iBeacon, a Bluetooth low-energy technology that detects mobile devices in proximity and links them to store point-of-sale systems for quick checkouts.

”The physical merchant ecosystem isn’t quite ready for this sort of service, so I think it’s a bit further down the road, but the promulgation of mobile POS systems or potential partnerships with major [financial institutions], payment networks, MCX, or large merchants could be accelerants to make this happen sooner,” Oglesby notes. MCX is Merchant Customer Exchange, a Dallas-based mobile-payments venture controlled by big-box retailers, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Best Buy Co Inc., and CVS/pharmacy.

**UPDATE #2**
Another good reading from Karen Webster:
http://www.pymnts.com/briefing-room/mobile/playmakers/2014/as-the-mobile-payments-world-turns

Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0072 Mobile Payments

Barcodes are dominating mobile payments at the moment with new player Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) making a stir and Near Field Communications (NFC) in trouble.

An article by Mobile Commerce Daily covers this ground well:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/barcode-apps-drive-mobile-payments-growth-report

Here is a snippet from that writing:

As mobile wallets’ use becomes more feasible, bar code-based payment applications are taking the lead followed by tab-based payment apps, while NFC-based payment apps barely keep pace, according to a new report from Parks Associates.
Happy reading,

J.W. Gant

News From 2013 and What Will Make News in 2014

If you are in the Boston, MA area as I am you are starting off the New Year with a pretty decent winter storm.  About a foot of snow expected and it is gusting up pretty well right now.

Happy Holidays, Happy Winter Solstice, and Happy New Year to everyone.

First I want to cover a few articles that recap 2013.  There are always quite a few as the year ends and I've found a few that are worth sharing.  Then I'll take a moment to put down a few of my thoughts for what to expect in 2014.

2013

Payments.com has been a go-to site for me and Karen Webster's writings are the best.  This recap of 2013 is a good one for payments:

http://www.pymnts.com/briefing-room/consumer-engagement/Loyalty/2013/looking-ahead-at-the-close-of-2013/

Here are a couple of lines from that one I want to share to help us look forward to 2014:

The payments and commerce space over the next year will be the most interesting we've seen in at least the last five and unleash even more innovation. 

This one from TechCrunch says goodbye to 2013 and welcomes the rest of the world to the mobile internet:

http://techcrunch.com/2014/01/02/the-late-adopters/

User Experience is important to product management in the technology space.  This article from a blog is a good one:

milestones-and-missteps-in-ux-design-for-2013-winners-and-losers-not-the-usual-suspects/

Last one from 2013 deals with the advent of the "mobile internet" during the holiday shopping season.  The title of the article says quite a lot:

http://www.csmonitor.com/Innovation/2013/1227/Santa-leaves-smart-phone-steps-in-Mobile-sales-soar-on-Christmas-Day

Here is a bit from that article:

Overall, online shopping continues to make a bigger dent in holiday shopping than previous years. IBM reports that online sales on Christmas Day were up 16.5 percent from last year, and mobile sales made up for 29 percent of all online sales, which is up 40 percent from 2012.

We will use that to segue to 2014...

2014

...speaking of mobile.  IBM is now declaring we must differentiate our data between smart phones and tablets.

http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240211774/Retailers-must-distinguish-between-smartphones-and-tablets-says-IBM

This is, of course, old news in this blog.  I wrote a white paper about this subject early in 2013.

Now how about a few thoughts on what 2014 might bring?

• Apple will attempt to make a splash in some arena, wearable devices maybe, maybe TV, maybe payments.  Meanwhile incremental changes will continue in their mature offerings but a move towards the now proven 2 in 1 laptop/tablet style by Microsoft will likely be forthcoming as well.
• This will be the year of the beacon.  Bluetooth 4.1 and Bluetooth Low Energy solutions will finally enable many of the brightest ideas around mobile internet interactions with people.
• Mobile wallets will have a breakout year.  The security breach at Target just might give EMV a push over the finish line and that could save ISIS.  Meanwhile MCX is on its way and PayPal isn't sitting around.
• Facebook will see big declines.  The "services" provided by Facebook have been chipped away at by a variety of other solutions such as Vine and Snapchat.  Overall the next generation of users has no interest in Facebook and this will begin to show itself this year.  Maybe the company will be mostly flat, maybe they'll find incremental ways to monetize their current offering, but the decline will be noticeable this year.
• Samsung will come out with yet another not-yet-ready product and declare itself the first to the top of the mountain once more ... and nobody will care.
• The biggest news I can't yet predict will likely involve a cloud-based solution for something.  I don't know what, but something.  The "internet of things" will take off in some way.  Will it be related to a cloud-based solution?  I don't know. 

Hope your new year brings you much happiness.

Happy reading,

J.W. Gant

Google Sidesteps Wireless Carriers for NFC

Google has released a new version of the Android operating system, version 4.4, it is calling it KitKat.  One piece of interesting news coming out of this update is a new piece of functionality that allows Near Field Communications (NFC) chips in Android devices to bypass the security layer imposed by wireless providers such as Verizon (and imposed by Google itself in 2011 it should be noted).  Software developers can now use something called "tokenization" to accomplish the security piece.

Wikipedia says:

Tokenization is the process of substituting a sensitive data element with an "easily" reversible benign substitute.

Tokenization is fast becoming the industry standard for cloud-based activity requiring a security component.  My first exposure to it came while working on payments products at a local ISO.

This new piece in the Android OS opens up the operating system for software developers to more freely create apps that use the NFC chip without incurring the cost of engaging in the security layer created by Google and the wireless providers.

What is the major problem here?  Apple still doesn't support NFC in its hardware.  This is, in my opinion, too little too late for NFC.  Some other huge event is required to bring back NFC.

Karen Webster of Market Platform Dynamics has a good piece on this over on pymts.com:

Is-HCE-NFC-s-Killer-App

Her opinion is pretty much in lock-step with my thinking.

...if you hear a stampede back to NFC just let me know. Of course I’ll probably tell you it was more likely the sound of your kids running down the stairs to check out the Loch Ness Monster that was spotted frolicking in your swimming pool.

Happy reading,

J.W. Gant