NFC is a short-distance wireless technology, and it is likely to be a catalyst for m-commerce. Some research groups believe that by 2014, one in five phones will be NFC-enabled.

A tag is a mechanism from which information can be wirelessly shared; in the same way a QR code can be read by a scanner (NFC reader). 

In some stores there will be a combination of tags and tag readers – the Smartphone will contain a tag/reader combination, as it is capable of sharing information, so that a store can retrieve your name, contact information and so on (with your permission) and likewise you can read information from a tag

At the backend of the NFC application, there may be several other applications supported by a web-portal or, in fact, a link through to a social media platform – ‘Likes’ a ‘retweet’; ‘+1’ and so on.  Of course, adoption will be slow at first and there will also be the early adopters which, in turn, will fuel the greater purchasing community. 

The brand tie-ins are potentially large.

With social media alone, brands can (and should) develop a dialogue with their consumers, which could well be further compounded by NFC supporting an ecosystem where consumers can begin to resurrect that loyalty spirit. 

NFC has the potential of creating a lively and dynamic market community sharing experiences and purchases with the wider community all enjoyed through social media.

we are still far away from the mass market

Mobile payments are predicted to grow 40 percent and reach 2.5 billion users globally by 2015

With deeper integration into the consumer experience a key criteria for success in mobile payments, some vendors do appear to trying to address these issues.

It takes more than a single player to make mobile payment happen

There is finally a single technical standard called Near Field Communication (NFC) that everyone is embracing.

This could be the rationale for Google’s purchase in December of Zetawire, a wireless payments startup.

Getting mobile payments to market will be a five-way fight. The contenders will be banks and credit card co-ops (Visa and MasterCard), online merchants (Amazon, eBay and Google), wireless carriers such as Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile, handset builders (Nokia, Motorola) and Facebook.

Mobile payments will be data-rich and complicated.

There are several technical options to do payments – in the phone itself, tapping a terminal such as a gas fob, texting or having charges billed to your mobile phone bill. 

"From avoiding the search for ATMs, to finding easier ways to split restaurant bills with friends or making payments anytime, anywhere and from virtually any device, Canadians want easier, faster and safer ways to shop, share expenses, send money or get paid back," said Darrell MacMullin, managing director of PayPal Canada, a subsidiary of eBay and the biggest name in online payments.

PayPal reported $750 million in global mobile payment volume in 2010 and expects that number to hit $3 billion by the end of 2011 as more consumers switch from regular cellphones to smartphones