Intel Corp. and Inside Secure on Wednesday signed a licensing agreement that enables Intel to integrate near-field communication technologies by Inside Secure into its future products. While it is unknown when such products emerge on the market, it is clear that Intel is considering NFC a viable technology for future mobile devices.

“NFC is gaining traction in many markets as one of the most convenient ways to use consumer electronic devices for payments and retail commerce transactions, for access to facilities and information, and a host of other applications. We look forward to working with Inside to develop and bring to market a range of exciting connectivity solutions for mainstream consumer products that incorporate NFC features,” said Aicha Evans, vice-president and general manager of Intel's mobile wireless group.

The agreement gives Intel access to Inside’s software, firmware and core hardware technology for development of future Intel products. In addition, Inside will provide Intel’s Mobile Wireless Group with access to scalable NFC solutions based on Inside’s MicroRead, SecuRead and Open NFC products.

A third-generation product that sets a new standard for ease of integration, the MicroRead NFC controller offers a broad range of NFC options and provides the capacity to support multiple secure element types, including SIM, SE or SD card, to support multiple business models. SecuRead integrates Inside’s MicroRead NFC controller with a high-performance secure element and a GlobalPlatform-compliant Java Card operating system. Both products are integrated with Inside’s Open NFC protocol stack to provide best-of-breed solutions. Open NFC has quickly become recognized as an open solution for NFC enablement on mobile devices, and has received significant industry support from a broad array of participants in the NFC ecosystem

“We are very excited to have this opportunity to work alongside Intel in the development of scalable NFC solutions for the industry. Working with an industry leader like Intel will play a significant role in the mainstream rollout of NFC,” said Charles Walton, chief operating officer for Inside Secure.

Tags: Intel, NFC, Inside Secure