What Will Drive Mobile NFC Take Up? Mobile Payments Or Angry Birds?

At the Sydney N9 press conference today, Nokia confirmed that the N9 would feature an activated NFC chip when it launched in Q3 in Australia, although the phone won’t support mobile NFC payments when that technology launches in Australia. So what can you use NFC for then? Angry Birds with magic.

To demonstrate NFC, Nokia showed off a N9 pairing with a set of NFC-enabled Bluetooth headphones – simply tap the two devices together to pair them together, and tap again to unpair. It looked both incredibly simple and incredibly convenient. But it also looked like a basic use of what is potentially a life-changing technology.

The other example of NFC technology shown off was the specialised version of Rovio’s Angry Birds game that rewards users for using NFC by unlocking new levels.

While enticing people to kill virtual pigs with virtual birds will no doubt have some success in educating customers on the use of NFC, it doesn’t really scream practicality. Personally, I’d rather see the ability to pay for purchases with my phone before putting myself through another Angry Birds game, but I could be in the minority. What do you guys think?


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