Apple Hires NFC Expert, Mobile Payments Coming to iPhone?

Apple has just hired Benjamin Vigier, an expert in the field of near-field communications, as its new product manager for mobile commerce, reports NearFieldCommunicationsWorld.com, a trade publication for NFC-based products.

NFC is a short-range, high-frequency wireless technology which lets devices, primarily mobile phones, communicate with other NFC devices in order to exchange data. This allows for a number of applications including mobile ticketing, mobile payment, e-money, electronic keys, smart billboards and more.

Vigier has been involved in NFC technology since 2004, working at French mobile network operator Bouygues Telecom and flash memory manufacturer Sandisk, NFC World reports. Most recently, he served as the product manager for mobile payments company mFoundry, where he designed PayPal's mobile service and Starbuck's barcode reading application, also used for mobile payments at checkout.

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