Once mobile NFC is ready for commercial launch, however, the convenience factor alone will drive adoption, said Simon Hu, VP and Greater China GM for Inside Contactless.
On the smart posters front, convenience could also NFC's trump card over 2D barcodes. Using an embedded barcode scanner on a Nokia N95, for instance, requires opening two menu pages before activating the barcode app and then being asked to scan the barcode.
"With an NFC phone, you just tap the tag. It's a much simpler process," says Lavergne of VivoTech.
That's key, he adds, because one of the most crucial elements to making mobile NFC a success is ease of use. "If you have to click "Ëœyes' ten times to download something, people will say "Ëœno' and stop using it."
The NFC seminar was organized by the Hong Kong Retail Technology Industry Association, the Wireless Telecommunications Industry Association, the Hong Kong Productivity Council and the Hong Kong Wireless Development Centre, as well as the government's Chief Information Officer department.