Mobile payments see strong growth in China

NFC tags technology

Mobile Payments - NFC technologyMobile payments are taking Asia by storm

Mobile payments have been growing more common throughout Asia. More consumers are purchasing smartphones and tablets and opening themselves up to new forms of commerce that had been largely restricted to stationary computers in the past. As mobile payments become more prolific, the need for an infrastructure capable of fostering their continued growth and convenience is becoming more realized. China’s Kainan University is poised to address this issue with a focus on NFC technology.

University plans to support the growth of mobile commerce

Kainan University has announced plans to foster the growth of mobile payments through the use of an NFC-based system. The university plans to demonstrate the investment potential of NFC-based mobile payments in order to acquire more financial support for the country’s emerging mobile commerce sector. The university also plans to introduce SmartCatch, a subsidiary it has formed that will specialize in NFC-based mobile payments.

SmartCatch to highlight value of mobile payments

SmartCatch will focus on the use of NFC technology and its implementation in to new mobile commerce services and platforms. In doing so, the company hopes to capture the interest of investors that have been looking into mobile payments. The attention of these investors has already been captured by the sheer number of people that have been participating in mobile commerce throughout China. There is still some confusion as to why consumers and businesses are so attracted to mobile payments, however, which is something that SmartCatch will work to address in the future.

Lack of NFC-enabled devices may be problematic

For the first year of its operation, 67% of the revenue generated by SmartCatch is expected to come from NFC-based mobile payments. This estimation may be somewhat ambitious, however, as NFC-based payments can only be accomplished through mobile devices equipped with NFC technology. These devices are currently rare, with the most popular of these devices being the Samsung Galaxy S III.