INSIDE Secure and ZTE to bring NFC phones to GSM and 3G networks

AIX-EN-PROVENCE, FRANCE: INSIDE Secure, a leader in semiconductor solutions for secure transactions, has expanded its partnership with ZTE Corp. to integrate INSIDE’s near field communication (NFC) technology into ZTE’s GSM and next-generation TD-SCDMA smartphone platform, which is based on the Android OS.

The NFC solution INSIDE and ZTE are creating is based on the INSIDE MicroRead® NFC controller and the companion Open NFC protocol stack. It will enable consumers in China and elsewhere to use ZTE 3G smartphones for a broad range of secure NFC applications, including payments, transportation, loyalty, ticketing and access control.

”We are very pleased to cooperate with a well-known brand handset maker such as ZTE for NFC deployment worldwide,” said Remy de Tonnac CEO of Inside Secure. “Based on our advanced NFC technology, we believe that we can provide an excellent NFC solution to ZTE in China and globally.”

“Today’s announcement is the latest result of our long-term relationship with ZTE in developing NFC solutions for their handset offerings, which now cover GSM 2G and TD-SCDMA 3G networks,” said Simon Hu, chief representative and general manager, Greater China for INSIDE Secure. “We look forward to strengthening our partnership with ZTE to provide best-of-breed NFC solutions as they develop more high-value handsets and continue to expand their operations throughout China and other regions.”

Now one of the top five handset vendors globally, ZTE recently indicated that it had sold 90 million handsets in 2010. ZTE has recently started making inroads in Western Europe, where ZTE reported its fastest growth, as well as in Japan and the US.

“Both smartphones and feature phones are essential to our long-term success in the global handset market, and NFC is quickly becoming an important component of these platforms,” said Wang Yongzhong, GM of GSM and UMTS handset products at ZTE. “Our ongoing partnership with INSIDE Secure gives us access to mature, proven NFC technologies and superior support that enables us to bring our handsets to market quickly and cost effectively.”

A third-generation product that sets a new standard for ease of integration, the MicroRead NFC controller offers a broad range of NFC options and provides the capacity to implement any secure element, including SIM, SE or SD card, to support any business model.

Winner of the prestigious SESAMES Innovation Award, Open NFC has received significant industry support from a broad array of participants in the NFC ecosystem.