Visa and Nokia announced a partnership that will enable Nokia mobile phones to be used as credit cards.
The phones will have a microchip installed under the cover, allowing them to be swiped over a retail scanner and used like a credit card.The debut was announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
While the announcement opens up possibilities for mobile adult content, those possibilities appear far from reality.
“The ramp-up period from selling candy bars in brick-and-mortar stores to selling adult content will take at least a couple years,” said Blake Fayling, a partner in Brickhouse Mobile. “I’m not sure that this type of sale is really going to work. We’ve tried similar schemes before with little success.”
The wireless standard linking mobile phones with payment systems is called the near field communication chip. NFC technology was created by Philips and Sony.
When activated, the NFC-enabled mobile phones can be used to pay for all retail goods—like groceries, gas, or movies. When swiping the phone over the reader, it electronically communicates with the NFC microchip in the phone. Phone owners can confirm the purchase by pressing a button on their phones.
Additionally, the technology can be used for contact-free payments, person-to-person payments, remote payments, and mobile coupons. The platform is the end product of years of trial testing worldwide. Presently, the NFC technology already is in use for public transit cards in many cities. Once accepted, individuals can manage savings, checking, and other bank accounts with their mobiles phones.
Although exciting, Fayling still has his doubts about the technology’s viability.
“There are also privacy concerns,” Fayling said. “People don’t want to be tracked and give up so much financial and person information.”
