The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CommBank) has today launched its NFC mobile payments solution, CommBank Tap & Pay, in what the bank is calling a world first.
In collaboration with Samsung and MasterCard, the Samsung Galaxy S4 has become the first phone to offer contactless payments at MasterCard PayPass locations with the use of NFC.
"The future of mobile payments has become a reality today," said Matt Barr, Head of Market Development and Innovation, MasterCard Australasia.
"Today marks the next step in the introduction of a mobile wallet into our everyday lives, simplifying the convenience of payments from our phones and laying the foundations for future innovations," said Angus Sullivan, CommBank's Executive General Manager for Cards, Payments, Analytics and Retail Strategy.
The smartphone wallet
CommBank first announced the new technology back in October, with Tap & Go becoming available late yesterday afternoon for customers who have the bank's new app.
While the app is available for Android and Windows Phone, Tap & Go payments is only being offered to Android customers at the moment.
For mobile payments at PayPass terminals, you need to either have a compatible Samsung Galaxy S4 model or a PayTag sticker attached to your Android phone, along with the CommBank app.
Check your S4 model, however, as there are currently 3 Galaxy S4 models available in Australia, but only two (i9505 and i9507) are compatible for NFC payments with CommBank at the moment – though Samsung has indicated that it is working to include the remaining model within the new year period.
Commbank's Executive General Manager for Digital Channels Lisa Frazier told TechRadar that the CommBank app and PayTag will be available for iOS "by the end of January 2014".
We imagine that compatibility for more devices will be announced down the road, while CommBank has said that it will be keeping an eye on Windows Phone adoption.
- Don't know what NFC is? Here's a little guide to what NFC is and why it is in your phone
