Opening NFC Mobile Payments to the Cloud

THIS MEETUP HAS BEEN POSTPONED. NEW DATE COMING SOON.

The payments space is a popular one for FinTech innovation, and this month we're going to dive into recent developments in contactless mobile payments technologies, including Host Card Emulation (HCE).

Many companies have been in search of the Holy Grail of mobile payments, and to wireless operators, NFC – Near Field Communications appeared to be that “strategic tool” to manage the other major stakeholders (Banks & Transportation Authorities) with NFC SIM cards for the payment credentials on Smartphones, but that never sat well with some ecosystem enablers, including handset manufacturers.

Fast forward to late 2013, Google introduced support for Host Card Emulation in Android 4.4 KitKat (http://www.android.com/versions/kit-kat-4-4/), enabling any Android NFC device to be used for mobile payments and other secure applications — without needing access to and thus bypassing the secure element in the SIM card.

A few months later Visa and Master Card jumped on board to support virtual payments in the Cloud, and now we begin to see major banks launching commercial HCE NFC payments services globally that makes use of Visa or Master Card’s cloud-based payments specifications and major Cloud-based TSMs like Bell ID and AB Note growing rapidly for HCE NFC Smartphone payment services. HCE has breathed new life into the lungs for NFC and that troth of disillusionment for NFC mobile payments has turned back into excitement in the payments industry.

Speaker:

Karl J. Weaver

Biz Dev Manager, Newport Technologieshttp://www.newporttechnologies.biz (http://www.newporttechnologies.biz/)

Karl J. Weaver is an OEM/ODM mobile device ecosystem and business development executive/rainmaker for the Near Field Communications, mobile (wallet) payments and TEE embedded mobile device security ecosystems in the Seattle area with his own meet-up group. Karl recently spent 5 years in China working for Gemalto (and sister company Trustonic) to design-in Near Field Communications then the TEE - Trusted Execution Environment to the Greater Chinese OEM Smartphone/Tablet PC manufacturing and related MNO, Banking, Transportation stakeholder ecosystem. He is a Globally-trained, bilingual Mandarin Chinese speaking senior mobility executive with vast experience selling wireless & mobile device technologies from both sides of the Pacific Rim.

He possess a B.S degree in Business Management from Salve Regina University, Certification in Mandarin Chinese Language, Customs and Culture from National Taiwan Normal University – Mandarin Training Center and Certification in Broadband wireless communications from the University of Washington (Seattle). He lives with his wife and daughter in Woodinville, WA but his workplace is the Globe.