NFC technology is on the verge of becoming a widespread mobile phenomena, thanks in large part to telecommunications giant Nokia. This summer, the company is unleashing a sleuth of NFC-enable smart phones and mobile devices into the commercial market. The company has been experimenting with the technology, and others like it, for years and seem to have developed a viable approach to the sometimes tumultuous world of short-range wireless communication. With its approach to NFC, Nokia is poised to compete with other companies entering into the mobile market with NFC-enabled devices of their own.
At present, Google is billed as Nokia’s most formidable competitor. The tech company is set to release their new Nexus S smart phone this summer, which will be equipped with the Google Wallet, an ambitious initiative geared toward mobile commerce. To offset the technological heavyweight that is Google, Nokia has teamed with Poken, a company specializing in personal branding through the use of NFC technology.
Together, Poken and Nokia will be building their NFC empire around the PokenMOBILE app, which centered around social networking rather than mobile payments. The application is designed to quickly distribute information, such as social contacts and phone numbers. In essence, the app is akin to a business card which can be distributed by touching smart phones together.
Much of the attention that NFC technology has garnered in recent months is being focused on its applications toward mobile commerce. Nokia, however, is keen to shift that focus toward social networking, an area in which NFC technology has excelled in the past.
