Mobile payments boost as Visa certifies more handsets for payWave

More NFC-enabled smartphones from vendors including Samsung and Research In Motion (RIM) were certified to work with card giant Visa's payWave mobile application on Tuesday, as the mobile payments industry continues to mature.

Visa Europe announced that the Samsung Galaxy S II, LG Optimus NET NFC, BlackBerry Bold 9900, BlackBerry Bold 9790, BlackBerry Curve 9360 and BlackBerry Curve 9380 were all compatible with the system, paving the way for greater consumer use of the service.

Apple still remains the one notable absentee from the NFC space, complaining that there are still too many conflicting standards to wrap the technology into its iPhones.

"We are working with our member banks, mobile network operators and key handset partners to ensure that future payment technologies are as easy, intuitive and secure as card-based transactions are today," said Sandra Alzetta, head of mobile business unit and innovation, strategy, at Visa Europe.

"Today's announcement plays a significant role in getting those new technologies into the hands of the consumer."

The card giant said the payWave certified devices would be compatible with existing NFC terminals to enable Visa account holders to wave their devices in front of the terminals in participating outlets to pay for goods.

Analyst firm Yankee Group predicts that the value of NFC-based transactions will grow from $27m in 2010 to a staggering $40bn in 2014.

However, Ovum analyst Eden Zoller cautioned that there have been several false dawns for the m-commerce industry, despite the clear momentum now behind mobile payments.

"Visa is very strong player though as card issuers are trusted providers which is critical in the payments space," she told V3.

"Rolling out solutions and enabling NFC in handsets is only part of the battle. The real issue is around consumer uptake."

Zoller argued that industry stakeholders need to convince consumers of the security of mobile payments and get a "broader ecosystem in place" by encouraging more retailers to participate.

In June 2011, Vodafone, O2 and Everything, Everywhere announced a partnership to create a SIM-based mobile payment system for the UK, building on the work done by Orange and Barclaycard with their Quick Tap initiative.