December 08, 2011 08:00 AM Eastern Time
Organizations from Building and Automotive, Communications, Fitness Monitoring, Imaging, Smart Cards, and Testing Industries Join Consortium
WAKEFIELD, Mass.--()--The NFC Forum, a non-profit industry association that advances the use of Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, today announced that Intel Corporation, a world leader in computing innovation, has upgraded from Principal to Sponsor level. Sponsor membership is the highest category, and its privileges include a seat on the NFC Forum Board of Directors, which manages the organization.
“Intel's decision to increase its level of involvement with the NFC Forum highlights the rising importance of NFC technology to our members and its value to consumers and businesses around the globe. I'm delighted to welcome Intel to our Board of Directors”
Sponsor members may designate individuals to run for Forum leadership positions, and each Sponsor member may appoint one voting representative to all NFC Forum Committees and Working Groups. Other privileges include proposing Forum initiatives and participating in the NFC Forum testing andcertification program using Sponsors' own in-house test labs.
In addition, the NFC Forum has recently welcomed 10 new Associate, Implementer, and Non-Profit members from across the NFC ecosystem.
New Associate members:
Allion Test Labs Inc.
Huawei Technologies Co, Ltd.
Interac Association/Acxsys Corporation
Polar Electro Oy
Huawei Technologies Co, Ltd.
Interac Association/Acxsys Corporation
Polar Electro Oy
New Implementer members:
New Non-Profit member:
"Intel's decision to increase its level of involvement with the NFC Forum highlights the rising importance of NFC technology to our members and its value to consumers and businesses around the globe. I'm delighted to welcome Intel to our Board of Directors," said Koichi Tagawa, chairman of the NFC Forum. "I extend the same warm welcome to our other new member organizations – representing nine countries and three continents – which will bring their particular expertise to our work and will share the benefits of NFC technology in their local markets."
"Intel believes NFC has great potential to enhance user experiences via simplified and secure device interaction. We are excited to have the opportunity to contribute to its evolution and growth in adoption across multiple platforms," said Ed Agis, Intel representative and new board member of the NFC Forum.
Information about the various membership levels offered by the NFC Forum is available at http://www.nfc-forum.org/join/, and a complete list of members can be found at http://www.nfc-forum.org/member_companies/.
About Near Field Communication Technology
NFC technology makes life easier and more convenient for consumers around the world by making it simpler to make transactions, exchange digital content, and connect electronic devices with a touch.
A standards-based connectivity technology, NFC harmonizes today's diverse contactless technologies, enabling current and future solutions in areas such as access control, consumer electronics, healthcare, information collection and exchange, loyalty and coupons, payments, and transport.
NFC technology is supported by the world’s leading communication device manufacturers, semiconductor producers, network operators, IT and services companies, and financial services organizations. NFC is compatible with hundreds of millions of contactless cards and readers already deployed worldwide.
About the NFC Forum
The NFC Forum was launched as a non-profit industry association in 2004 by leading mobile communications, semiconductor, and consumer electronics companies. The Forum’s mission is to advance the use of Near Field Communication technology by developing specifications, ensuring interoperability among devices and services, and educating the market about NFC technology. The Forum’s 160+ global member companies currently are developing specifications for a modular NFC device architecture, and protocols for interoperable data exchange and device-independent service delivery, device discovery, and device capability.
The NFC Forum’s Sponsor members, which hold seats on the Board of Directors, include leading players in key industries around the world. The Sponsor members are: Barclaycard, Broadcom Corporation, INSIDE Secure, Intel, MasterCard Worldwide, Microsoft Corp., NEC, Nokia, NTT DOCOMO, Inc., NXP Semiconductors, Renesas Electronics Corporation, Samsung, Sony Corporation, STMicroelectronics, and Visa Inc.
