NFC phones – expensive mobile wallets

[img_assist|nid=7516|title=|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=67]By nearly 2012 one phone in five sold will be equipped with the technology that enables small payments from mobile phones by just flashing the handset.

Simply waving a phone over a wireless reader -- and in some cases punching a PIN number into the phone customers will be able to use their mobile devices as a wallet or as an access card. Today something in the nature is done by travelers in Tokyo and London to access public transport.

At present time the system is already available and four products supporting it were introduced by Nokia. However the offering is still limited and the prices are very high which prevents consumers from using the service.

"When the 20 percent level is reached it starts to feed itself. That is the critical point," Jukka Suikkanen, R&D manager at top Nordic telecom operator TeliaSonera, told an industry seminar in Helsinki.

As per forecasts of Strategy Analytics and ABI Research the 20 percent margin may be reached in 2012.

Nokia's 6131 model sells for 139 euros in Finland, (about US$215) but for the NFC (Near Field Communication) version of the same phone retailers are asking up to 100 euros more. The point is that an extra chip is needed in phones for data security.