Inside Contactless, a provider of contactless and near field communication (NFC) chip technologies, and Twinlinx, a provider NFC technology platforms and applications, have partnered together to integrate Inside’s secure components into the Twinlinx MyMax NFC sticker. Both the companies are also cooperating to gain type approval from bank card brands.
The MyMax NFC sticker incorporates Inside’s MicroPass payment platform, enabling NFC payment and communication capability to be quickly and easily added to Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones. MyMax is a thin electronic sticker designed to upgrade existing and future Bluetooth phones with NFC functionality for mass deployment of NFC applications, including payment, transport, loyalty, access control and smart posters.
Inside said that it will be supporting Twinlinx’s efforts in North America and other markets as part of its initiative to jumpstart the mobile payments market in 2010. Moreover, Twinlinx is in discussions with wireless carriers and transport operators in the US and Europe, and added that it has established agreements with a number of them.
Charles Walton, executive vice president of Inside Contactless, said: “The major banks we have approached are very excited by the MyMax NFC sticker because it allows consumers to use their existing mobile phones to conduct mobile payment transactions and run NFC applications, and they have encouraged us to seek type approval from the bank card brands.”
Jacek Kowalski, founder and CEO of Twinlinx, said: “Our partnership with INSIDE and the power of their MicroPass payment platform are critical elements in the success of our MyMax product. Payment will be a critical component for a broad range of NFC applications, and we will be working with INSIDE to obtain payment certification for the MyMax product from major bank card brands to help promote widespread consumer adoption of this very compelling technology.”
