I was distracted for about 10 minutes this afternoon, by an email from the Motley Fool (US investor website, newsletter) promising to tell me about a new technology that I could get in on the ground floor with, and make gazillions. I quite like the Fool - they used to send out hugely lengthy emails that you read and read and read until you realised they wanted to part you with your money (normally in the hundreds of dollars - it's US) for investment tips.
The one I received today though, on a technology called NFC (Near Field Communication) intrigued, because it's about a technology that will, for sure, be changing the way we pay for stuff. Their email was basically about buying shares in businesses embracing, or developing this technology - but it failed to mention that Apple has recently eschewed the idea of embedding the tech in their latest iPhone 4S launch, and probably all other Apple devices, because they're Square.
What I mean is Apple is hooked up with Square (used to be called Square Up - founded by Jack Dorsey, creator of Twitter - already has a track record...), which is a simple little gizmo you plug into the headphone socket on your iPhone, iPad (it's square by the way) that allows you to take payment from someone else's credit card.
Apple is already used to denying stuff it doesn't like the look of into its ecosystem - witness the, I have to admit, inability to play flash stuff - but for sure this NFC technology (whether Square or other) is going to be huge.
For example, Wal-Mart are A) going to start selling Squares (the Apple iTunes store already does, in the USA at least) and B), in the same way that Apple store assistants can process your purchase without going anywhere near a till, so - in the future, you can bet Wal-Mart (and other stores) will embrace the ability to DO AWAY WITH THE TILL altogether, processing customers purchasers anywhere in the store.
Make no mistake, this is big news. Back in 1949, when Diners Card was basically founded (chap turned up to dine at restaurant in USA, had no cash, then basically convinced a few restaurants to honour his 'Diners Card') this is now a US$2.5 Trillion business.
Anything that involves me not carrying around a wallet stuffed full of receipts, credit cards and cash is music to my ears.
So, the question is this. Will Google (Android) who are embracing NFC technology 'embedded' in their smartphone devices beat Apple (iOS) who are - I'm sure - going to embrace the Square technology first outside, then inside their devices.
It's Visa v Mastercard.
iCard anyone?
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