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Google Wallet Mobile Payments Coming: What It Means for You

19.09.2011
In late May, Google, MasterCard, Citi and a handful of U.S. retailers , which will allow consumer to use select Near Field Communications (NFC) enabled, Android smartphones to pay for goods and services. And it looks like Google Wallet may officially launch today--though only one smartphone, the , will reportedly support the service at first.

From a purported, leaked Google Wallet document, :

"Google Wallet is launching September 19, 2011. Google Wallet is a smartphone application (app) that allows owners of the Sprint Nexus S Android phone to use their smartphone as a wallet. This application or app will transform the way clients pay. Once Google Wallet is installed, the Spring Nexus S phone may be used as a contactless (Tap and Pay) device at all PayPass enabled merchant terminals."

have already been spotted at certain retailers, as well, including a Peet's Coffee shop in San Francisco, which further suggests the service should launch in the very near future. (See image below.)

Google Wallet uses PayPass, a "contactless" payment service from MasterCard that lets its customers "tap" enabled credit cards, keyfobs and now, mobile phones, to compatible readers at payment terminals to pay for services. Google Wallet, which employs NFC and PayPass, will only work with PayPass-enabled Citi MasterCards and no other credit cards at launch, according to reports. And you'll need a Google Nexus S smartphone running Android v2.3.4 (Gingerbread), to utilize Google Wallet.

The news is significant, because it represents one of the largest and most high-profile uses of NFC for mobile payments today. in the coming years, not just for payments, but also for secure building access, employee attendance and tracking and much more. In fact, BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion (RIM), will soon be able to be used as secure access cards.