Two contactless smartcard applications sweeping the Far East herald
the eventual dominance of radio frequency identification (RFID)
technology for e-payments, a leading Web technology consultant told
the UK's top finance institutions.
According to David Birch, director of Consult Hyperion, the two
areas to watch are the Octopus card used for the Hong Kong public
transport system, and Sony's EDY e-purse, active in Japan.
The average payment over Octopus is low, while those via EDY, which
is designed to enable people to buy online, is larger, he
said.
"RFID is wiping the floor with everything else," Birch said.
He warned delegates that the technology threatens to allow
transactions independently of traditional banks or of the telecoms
companies.
In Hong Kong, RFID cards with a range of 10cm, are used to pay for
transport and for products such as newspapers. Octopus' target is
to increase non-transit applications from the current 10% to 50% of
e-payments, he said.