„As NFC technology reaches into many new markets and industries, the NFC Forum is working to make the process as smooth and effective as possible by collaborating with leadership organizations that share our goals,“ said Koichi Tagawa, chairman of the NFC Forum. „These new agreements with Global Certification Forum (GCF), the International Air Transport Association (IATA), and the Wi-Fi Alliance will expedite the availability and use of more globally interoperable NFC-enabled solutions. We look forward to sharing long and productive partnerships with these organizations.“
The organizations and agreements are as follows:
GCF is a partnership of network operators, device manufacturers, and the test industry that has created an independent certification program to help ensure global interoperability between mobile devices and networks. Under their liaison agreement, GCF and the NFC Forum will work together to: identify certification requirements impacting NFC-enabled 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) wireless devices embedding NFC and 3GPP technologies; develop processes and procedures to ensure the robustness, reliability, and transparency of NFC-enabled 3GPP wireless device certification; and deliver joint announcements and collaborative marketing programs.
IATA is the trade association for the world’s airlines, representing some 240 airlines that account for 84 percent of total air traffic. The NFC Forum and IATA will work together to raise awareness in the market, and help build the ecosystem for NFC. The agreement will include outreach programs such as workshops for airlines and airports, white papers, case studies, webcasts, and events.
The Wi-Fi Alliance is a global non-profit industry association of hundreds of leading companies devoted to seamless connectivity. With technology development, market building, and regulatory programs, the Wi-Fi Alliance has enabled widespread adoption of Wi-Fi worldwide. Under their agreement, the Wi-Fi Alliance and the NFC Forum will exchange approved documents, share information about program schedules, work jointly on NFC Forum Application Documents describing the use of NFC for Wi-Fi network configuration, cooperate on shared marketing material to promote certification programs, and participate in joint events.