Orange UK (and therefore likely T-Mobile, given the Everything Everywhere affiliation) has told TechRadar that it is planning big things for mobile payment technology in 2011.
After the CEO of France-Telecom Orange promised half a million contactless-enabled phones to Europe last week, TechRadar contacted the UK branch to see what we Brits have in store:
"In line with the strategic partnership objectives we outlined last year, we are currently working together with Barclaycard to develop new technology which will revolutionise the way people pay on the high street," confirmed an Orange spokesperson.
"Rest assured consumers can expect some great products and services from us in this area and more will be announced in due course."
Different to the Nexus S?
It's still a bit woolly at the moment, but it seems Orange plans to press ahead with contactless-enabled SIMs - meaning the tech used might not be the same as the NFC seen on the Google Nexus S.
Orange has been an advocate of contactless payments for a while now, with trials run with the likes of Barclaycard (on an independent credit card) and contactless tickets with Manchester City.
2011 is likely to be the foundation year for contactless payments in the UK - if it takes off, then beeping our phones all over the place will likely become a common site in time for the Olympics.
