In recent weeks, with all the press coverage about iOS 13, you may have heard
how the new operating system impacts near field communication (NFC), the
contactless technology used for Apple Pay and other “tap and go”
use cases. With the recent upgrade of
Apple’s Core NFC framework and the release of iOS 13, it is possible to use an iPhone (iPhone models 7 and up) to read NFC tags
and also write directly to tags and interact with them. Now users can enjoy
the benefits NFC has to offer.
What you may not have heard is that iOS 13 has a similarly positive impact on
contactless MIFARE product-based use cases, since MIFARE ICs are fully
NFC-compliant. With iOS 13, iPhone users can take advantage of everything
MIFARE has to offer.
What’s in for MIFARE with iOS 13?
With the arrival of iOS 13 and its support for
MIFARE products, it’s now possible to develop apps for iOS 13 that use the full
feature set of MIFARE DESFire, MIFARE Plus and MIFARE Ultralight products. As
a result, service providers can introduce a wide range of new features, such
as smart cards that use the iPhone display to show remaining balance of a
transit ticket, let a hotel guest personalize their room key or use a mobile
ticket vending machine.
Also, because NXP’s MIFARE DESFire and MIFARE Ultralight products can
hold NDEF-formatted content (the same format used by NFC Forum Tag Type
specifications), developers can deliver other capabilities, too, such as
enabling automatic mobile interactions without having to launch an app. For
example, the NDEF-formatted content in a smart card or ticket based on MIFARE
DESFire or MIFARE Ultralight can use the iPhone to redirect the browser to a
specific URL with background reading, to read a business card or to point to
content in the App Store – and to read and write other NDEF-formatted
content using an app.
MIFARE, iOS 13 and Smart Cities: A natural fit
With MIFARE and iOS 13, smart cards can connect to a service provider’s
online portal and give consumers a user experience enhanced with secure and
dynamic interaction. With a transport application, for example, iPhone users
have the ability to interact with the in-place payment infrastructure so
travelers can display content, store value or even top up their fare amount
– without having to wait for infrastructure upgrades.
Consumers can now take advantage of engaging, interactive smart city use
cases. Here are just a few examples:
-
Ticket machine
in the palm of your hand
Having to wait in line to use a vending machine to get a new ticket or
reload an existing one can be a hassle, especially during rush hour. Add to
that the pain of having to navigate complex menu options while people in
line behind you get impatient, and getting a ticket can be a pretty
stressful experience. Now, with iOS 13, your iPhone becomes your ticket
machine so there’s no waiting in line or pressure to make choices
quickly.
-
A self-service
hotel key
in your pocket
Staying in a hotel has never been more convenient. Now you can book your
hotel room online and, at the same time, update your membership points and
configure a room key on your iPhone. The secure channel running from the
cloud to the iPhone makes it safe to deliver mobile keys without
compromising privacy. All you have to do is show up, find your room and
unlock the door.
-
A smarter, more
interactive way
to pay and earn rewards
By connecting a payment or loyalty card to the iPhone and additional
services in the cloud, everyday transactions become more interactive and
rewarding. The providers of loyalty programs can create enticing digital
offers for their clients, and consumers can tap their iPhone to the reader
at their favorite shop to earn points and view their reward balances right
away using the mobile app.
One more on a long list of innovation.
Now in its 25th year, MIFARE has become the heart of contactless
infrastructures in more than 750 cities worldwide. We’ve continued to
focus on smart city uses cases and continue to break new ground with, most
recently, our new
MIFARE DESFire Light IC
for fast deployment of services and our
MIFARE 2GO
and MIFARE AppXplorer cloud platforms. These platforms enable easy integration
of mobile services and facilitate collaboration with third parties in smart
cities. And now, with the arrival of iOS 13, developers and consumers can
benefit from everything MIFARE product innovations have to offer.
It makes sense that, as the inventor of MIFARE and the co-inventor of NFC
technology, NXP offers the industry’s broadest portfolio of NFC
contactless solutions, including tag, label and card ICs. We also support our
customers and partners with tools that help facilitate the creation of new
solutions, like those that take advantage of the newly released capabilities
of iOS 13.
To learn more, browse through our
iOS 13 landing page
for further details or watch our latest
webinar recording.
