These liaisons broaden and strengthen the NFC Forum's collaborative ties with key associations and standards bodies across the NFC ecosystem. As a first step in the liaisons, the Forum has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with each organization that outlines how they will collaborate to further the development of the NFC market and NFC-based solutions.

EMVCo

EMVCo's primary role is to manage, maintain and enhance the EMVTM Integrated Circuit Card Specifications to ensure interoperability and acceptance of payment system integrated circuit cards on a worldwide basis.

With this new liaison, EMVCo will share relevant technical information with the NFC Forum that will enable the certification of properly-provisioned NFC devices for use in the following scenarios:

* to make POS payments (in Card Emulation mode) wherever such payments can be made with EMVCo contactless card products;
* to act as POS devices (in Reader/Writer mode) within the EMVCo contactless payment infrastructure.

GSM Association (GSMA)

The GSMA represents the interests of the worldwide mobile communications industry. The new partnership will facilitate the NFC Forum and GSMA working together by:

* exchanging information relating to each other's programs through written comments;
* commenting on technical specifications, certification and testing requirements;
* sharing documents of interest and relevance to members of both organizations;
* collaborating on joint marketing activities, such as seminar sessions, white papers and presentations; and
* attending each other's meetings as appropriate.

Smart Card Alliance

The Smart Card Alliance is a not-for-profit, multi-industry association working to stimulate the understanding, adoption, use and widespread application of smart card technology.

The Smart Card Alliance is teaming up with the NFC Forum on several joint marketing initiatives, including educational programs for vertical markets such as retail and transport. Other programs under discussion include presentations at each other's events and meetings, a joint event targeting the retail market in the U.S., and the provision for regular information sharing between the NFC Forum Marketing Committee and Smart Card Alliance Contactless and Mobile Payments Council.

"The ongoing global deployment and adoption of NFC technology requires our close cooperation and interaction with all the key players in the NFC ecosystem," said Koichi Tagawa, chairman of the NFC Forum. "As the leading voices representing payment card companies, mobile operators, and the smart card industry, respectively, EMVCo, GSMA and Smart Card Alliance are valued partners in our efforts to bring the ease and power of NFC technology to mobile users around the globe."

In addition to EMVCo, GSMA and SmartCard Alliance, the NFC Forum has established liaisons with the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and the Mobey Forum, a global financial industry forum whose mission is to facilitate the offering by banks of mobile financial services.