Intel gets serious about NFC and upgrades NFC Forum membership

Intel gets serious about NFC and upgrades NFC Forum membership

Today NFC scores another step forward in becoming ubiquitous as Intel upgrades its membership to the NFC Forum from a Principal member all the way to the top position of Sponsor level. First things first, this shows Intel’s intentions towards NFC .We have already caught sight of an Intel NFC tablet and the firm has also announced their intentions to support NFC and secure payments in their line of UltraBooks.

What makes the announcement of Intel upgrading its membership important is that the firm represents ubiquity across PC and Mac platforms. Its support of NFC represents mass deployment of NFC enabled devices that include PCs, tablets and laptops / netbooks. That alone will undoubtedly bring NFC capabilities to most users’ machines within the next few years. We have already seen Microsoft, Google, Samsung, Nokia, RIM and other large firms throw their support behind NFC, but very few have the clout of Intel. Because Intel is part of so many manufacturers’ product lines, the Intel announcement is as big as the Microsoft Windows 8 announcement in bringing NFC mainstream.

Intel takes a leading role in NFC with a seat on the Board of Directors over at the NFC Forum

What is also clear is that Intel isn’t planning on taking a back seat in NFC. With that upgraded membership the firm earns a seat on the Board of Directors over at the NFC Forum and will be able to influence and support NFC on a larger level.

“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.

The NFC Forum continues to go from strength to strength and Intel aren’t the only ones signing up to become members. It is becoming evident that the amount of member companies in the NFC Forum is accelerating by the month. Here are the latest NFC Forum additions:

New NFC Forum Associate members:

Allion Test Labs Inc., Huawei Technologies Co, Ltd., Interac Association/Acxsys Corporation, Polar Electro Oy,

New NFC Forum Implementer members:

Állami Nyomda Plc., Athena Smartcard Solutions, GN Netcom A/S, Johnson Controls Inc., RICOH Company, Ltd.

New NFC Forum Non-Profit member:

University of Applied Sciences, HES-SO Valais

Intel joins a star studded line up of other Sponsor members, which include 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.

Today NFC took another step towards ubiquity and the only large player that has still not engaged is Apple, but perhaps now Intel has signed up for the top level of commitment to the NFC Forum this could spur Cupertino to make some announcements in the near future.