NFC SIM market to increase at a momentous CAGR of 94.7%

The global near field communication (NFC) SIM market has been forecast to boom through to 2015, increasing at a compound annual growth (CAGR) of 94.7%. The industry witnessed a strong period throughout 2011 with a total of 16 million NFC SIMs shipped globally throughout the year and has been forecast some 700 million devices by 2016.

Key factors driving growth within the industry include the increasing adoption of NFC technology in Japan, along side the growing trend of contactless payments.

Mobile operators across the globe have shown interest and support for NFC SIM rollout. More than 45 mobile operators have backed NFC technology for this GSM Association's standard. They are working together to provide extra security and interoperability through NFC SIM cards.

Vodafone Group plc. is partnering with VISA Inc. to launch its mobile wallet in European countries such as Germany, Spain, the UK, the Netherlands, etc. Vodafone has significantly large numbers of customers in these countries that could drive the demand for NFC SIMs.

In late June the mobile operator Orange announced that it will initiate a nationwide deployment of NFC SIM cards across its home market of France, covering 27 million subscribers. Orange says it will be rolling this out in other markets, too: its footprint includes mobile operations in the UK, Africa and other countries in Europe, 33 countries in all with 166 million mobile subscribers, and it projects that the next markets to see NFC SIMs will be the UK, Spain and Poland.

One of the key advantages of NFC technology is that it can be used to perform various day-to-day transactions. Mobile devices can serve as a form of ID as well as an electronic wallet. NFC applications such as mobile payment and mobile wallet have rapidly attracted consumers and large companies across the world.

Companies such as American Express Co., VISA, and Google Inc. have adopted mobile payments. This gives companies a chance to know their customer preferences and a medium to interact with them. They can track consumer interest and provide incentives based on purchasing behaviour.

For more information on the NFC SIM market, see the latest research: NFC SIM market

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