With all that it has to offer, NFC technology may just be set to take the markets by storm and manufacturers have already started betting on its feasibility. For starters, Toshiba has officially announced that it will begin commercial supply of User Identity Module (UIM) cards supporting near field communication (NFC) to KDDI starting from this month.
The new UIM cards developed by Toshiba come equipped with GSM and CDMA2000 and further support NFC. These are likely to be pitched commercially in the near future. The cards adhere to the latest specifications of the GlobalPlatform, GSMA and the European Telecommunications Standards Institute-Smart Card Platform (ETSI SCP). Mobile devices sporting UIM cards and NFC will enable users to take advantage of services like electronic ticketing, multiple payments, personal identification and more.
In May 2010, KDDI started testing contactless IC technology subject to the ISO/IEC14443 Type A/B international standards using devices supporting NFC. The company wanted to verify the technical dependability and user-friendliness of application systems such as electronic payment and so on. Toshiba took part in this testing in order to assess the viability of the UIM card and to set up the technology. KDDI accepted Toshiba as a UIM card supplier in December 2010 and Toshiba will start the delivery of the cards in this month, as we mentioned earlier.
Toshiba will be looking forward to mass producing UIM cards and endorsing them to MNO globally, including operators in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Additionally, the company is also on a quest to deliver a line-up of UIM cards for extending its business area to network-based services the world over.
