Google Bypasses Mobile Wallet Carrier Restrictions for NFC Payments
The refusal of key mobile carriers to support Google’s payment apps on the NFC chip’s Secure Element has been a major obstacle that Google has surmounted by introducing support for Host Card Emulation (HCE) in the latest version of its Android operating system. HCE makes it unnecessary to access the Secure Element in order to support NFC-based transactions for payments, loyalty programs, card access, transit passes, and other custom services. HCE enables any app on an Android device to mimic an NFC smart card, enabling users to tap to trigger transactions with a preferred app. In addition, apps can use a new Reader Mode to serve as readers for HCE cards and other NFC-based transactions. Android HCE imitates SO/IEC 7816-based smart cards employing the contactless ISO/IEC 14443-4 (ISO-DEP) protocol for transmission. Many systems, including the existing EMVCo NFC payment infrastructure, currently use such cards. The device must be equipped with an NFC controller for Android HCE to work. “Support for HCE is already widely available on most NFC controllers, which offer dynamic support for both HCE and SE transactions,” Google says.
From “Google Bypasses the Secure Element to Circumvent Carrier Restrictions on Mobile Wallet”
Finextra (11/01/13)