Contactless payment rumoured to embedded in the iphone 5

Contactless payments have been getting a bit of attention in the last few days. The idea that consumers could pay for something simply by swiping their mobile phones against an in-store device sounds enticing, and mobile phone operators are certainly keen to push ahead with the technology.

Everything Everywhere, the company formed when Orange and T-Mobile merged, has recently announced the launch of a smartphone with Near Field Communication (NFC) technology embedded in it, due this summer. And there are rumours circulating that Apple’s iPhone 5 – to be launched this year – will also be capable of paying for small purchases by swiping it against a reader, in the same way that Oyster cards are used for travel on London public transport.

The phone releases might be high profile, but if retailers don’t invest in the devices to read NFC it won’t take off. There are concerns - NFC has a limit of £15 per transaction, making it less useful for any retailer whose average purchase is bigger than that. Plus there are big initial costs, with the devices being expensive, and big running costs, with bank charges for NFC transactions currently high. Steve Thomas, CTO at BT Expedite, says there are also cheaper alternatives that do the same job. Maybe the momentum from phone manufacturers will be enough to carry it, but it seems unlikely if retailers can’t be convinced.

Rebecca Thomson, Retail Week

Visa's Local Deals on the iPhone

Visa has announced that its official iPhone application is available for free in the iTunes App Store. It’s completely in step with other popular consumer apps, as it’s heavy on deals and location-based technology.

Each user automatically receives customized offers, which are stored in the app and can be redeemed online or in brick-and-mortar stores. The app gives its users a handy map and directions for locating retail outlets where they can redeem their offers, and it will also help Visa cardholders find nearby ATMs.

At launch, Visa is working with about 50 hand-picked retailers to bring special deals to Visa account holders via the Visa iPhone app. Participating merchants currently include 24 Hour Fitness, Meineke, New York & Company, Holiday Inn, Hard Rock Café and Zales.

As far as customization goes, users will be able to select from a handful of categories to tailor the offers they get; verticals include purchases such as clothing, jewelry, travel, dining, entertainment and other retail goods.

And account holders with Visa Signature cards will get extra special offers in addition to the offers available to all Visa account holders.

While we were expecting something a bit less trendy and a bit more techie from the credit card company — something like what Visa did for New York City subway riders, perhaps — Visa’s first official iPhone app is a decent starting point.

Jolie O'Dell for Mashable

Gap's model search through iphone app

If you’ve ever looked into the windows of a babyGap or GapKids storefront and thought to yourself: “Wow, my child is way prettier than all of these kids photographed in the window front, it’s too bad I’m too lazy to take a quality portrait on my digital camera, and upload it to Gap’s website for its annual babyGap and Gap Kids Casting Call contest,” today is your lucky day — if you own an iPhone, that is.

For the fifth year of its Casting Call campaign, Gap has developed a special iPhone app [iTunes link] to make it easier for parents to enter their 0 to 10-year-olds into the contest, the four winners of which will be featured in the company’s babyGap or GapKids store window advertisements, and other promotional materials. Gap judges will select and fly 20 finalists to San Francisco for a professional photo shoot in mid-November. Fans will be able to vote on the final winners from December 6-20.

Parents can enter their 0-10-year-olds using the mobile app. After registering, you’ll be asked to fill out a short entry form including your child’s name, sex and date of birth, as well as your contact information. You’ll then be prompted to take a photo of your child using your iPhone or to pick one from your existing library, which cannot be more than three months old.

After you’ve entered it’s time to beg your friends to download the app and start voting for your kid; the one with the most votes will receive a $1,000 Gap gift card for receiving the most votes, though s/he will not be flown out to do a photo shoot, unless s/he is also a favorite of the judges. You can then keep track of how many Fan votes your children have garnered under “My Entries,” as well as keep track of how many votes the competition has received in the Gallery section.

In all seriousness, the app is a smart idea that should substantially increase the number of submissions, which numbered more than 1 million last year. Gap has pursued an aggressive digital and mobile marketing strategy as of late, having offered discounts via Foursquare (Foursquare), Loopt, and Groupon all within the last six months.

From: Mashable