Mention unintended slip?

Deutsche Telekom has identified Apple as one of the companies which will be supporting NFC (near-field communication) payments this year, reports say. In slides handed out today during a presentation at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Apple was listed as a company participating in the rollout of NFC payment systems across several cellphones. Although the process is beginning in 2011, full-scale deployments are only scheduled for 2012.

Apple's name was not mentioned out loud by executives, and is absent from an official press release, which could suggest that the slides are inaccurate. They may also represent a leak however, which would be backed up by many reports suggesting Apple is planning to add NFC technology to a fifth-generation iPhone, and possibly the second-generation iPad. If the next iPad gets the technology, some details could be revealed as soon as February or March.

Deutsche Telekom is the parent company of T-Mobile. The carrier's US division will be gaining NFC through a program called Isis, announced in partnership with AT&T and Verizon. NFC payments may require broad support to become practical, including not only carriers and cellphone makers but retailers willing to install compatible terminals.

By Electronista Staff