It seems the latest trend in the mobile phone industry is to jump on the NFC (Near-Field Communication) Technology Bandwagon.
Samsung and Google got there first, Apple are thinking about it, Blackberry are going to use it, as are Nokia, and now the latest to join the list is Microsoft.
A report by Bloomberg indicates that Microsoft are planning to implement NFC chips into the second wave of Windows Phone 7 handsets, something that they plan to announce at the Microsoft MIX11 Developer Conference next month.
Like Google, Microsoft is planning to use NFC technologies to implement a wireless mobile payment system, though it is currently unclear who they will be partnering with.
According to Bloomberg’s report, the first Windows Phone handsets to feature NFC chips will be available during late 2011, and will feature the next major update “Mango”. Mango is believed to be the next iteration of Windows Phone, and is expected to be released as Windows Phone 7.5 when the operating system turns one year old this October.
Via: Bloomberg