The predictions about Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) embracing near-field communications (NFC) technology in its iPhone has made rounds in the tech arena for years, but so far none of those anticipations came true. But, now Morgan Stanley retells the same forecast in its report published on Tuesday that the iPhone maker will incorporate the technology in its new “iWallet,” technology, according to Appleinsider.
NFC chips have long been shipped by the competing smartphones to exploit the services like Google Wallet but mobile transactions are yet to create its space amid consumers. Talking about the potential future strategies, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook, had hinted that the company could soon enter the mobile payments market through using its secured Touch ID fingerprint scanner technology, currently in iPhone 5s, to validate transactions, but right now Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s products lacks NFC chip.
Till date, the company is relying on Bluetooth and Wi-Fi supplemented by iBeacon specification, but Morgan Stanley is confident that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) will soon incorporate an NFC chip in its future devices. AppleInsider quotes Morgan Stanley’s analyst Craig Hettenbach from the copy of Tuesday’s report that NFC is fast approaching an “inflection point”, helped by the new partnerships, patent filings that includes those from Apple and potential licenses.
Apart from the citing Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) filings for NFC patents, Hettenbach also referred to a report earlier this month that revealed Apple had entered into an agreement with China UnionPay, a China based interbank network. The report mentioned that through this agreement, the two companies aim to work together in developing NFC payments indicating that the technology could debut in the next iPhone. Hettenbach believes that if Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is able to get a major breakthrough in NFC technology, then it could go forward offering standalone NFC controller incorporated in its future iPhones. Furthermore, Hettenbach doubts whether Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) will adopt embedded route for mobile payments, considering the iPhone maker’s sensitivity towards security
