Interoperability in a competitive market

Full interoperability for NFC would mean that any handset, running any operating system and with any suitable SE, would enable its user to access any NFC service in any country or location, subject to payment where needed. Users could use any GSM, CDMA or 3G network, and could change phone or network without losing access to their service. The handset and user interface would work in a sufficiently similar way to be immediately recognizable to the user, who could also use any adaptations that they have on their own phone.

Although NFC standards are agreed at an international level, differences in implementation of the standards, the need for compatibility with existing services, commercial competition and variations in business model mean that the industry is far from achieving this level of interoperability. I have three NFC phones, linked to three different operators in two countries. Although all of them can read a basic tag, each of the services to which I have subscribed can be used on only one of these phones, either because of phone features (the SE) or network contractual agreements.

Some steps are being taken to improve the situation but some differences will always remain, and are not necessarily unhealthy in a competitive marketplace.