Apple Opening Up iPhone's NFC Chip to Third-Party Developers in iOS 18.1

[MacRumors]

Apple today announced that developers will soon be able to offer NFC transactions in their own apps for the first time – something that is mostly exclusive to Apple Pay at present.

Starting with iOS 18.1 later this year, developers will be able to offer in-app contactless transactions, separate from Apple Pay and Apple Wallet, using new APIs. This opens up new possibilities for in-store payments, car keys, closed-loop transit, corporate badges, student IDs, home keys, hotel keys, merchant loyalty and rewards cards, and event tickets, as well as government IDs in the future. The APIs use the Secure Enclave inside the iPhone, a certified chip that stores sensitive information directly on the device itself.

Users will be able to use an app that features these APIs either by opening the app directly or setting it as their default contactless app in Settings to double-click the Side button and initiate the transaction.

Developers will need to request the NFC and Secure Enclave entitlement, enter into a commercial agreement with Apple, and pay the associated fees. Apple says this ensures that only authorized developers who meet certain regulatory and industry requirements and commit to Apple's security and privacy standards can gain access to the APIs.

The NFC and Secure Enclave APIs will be available to developers in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the UK, and the U.S. in an upcoming developer seed for iOS 18.1, with more regions to follow.

Article Link: Apple Opening Up iPhone's NFC Chip to Third-Party Developers in iOS 18.1

 

[Apple$]

A win for consumers! Thank you, EU! (From North America)
I feel it would benefit all of us in the long run. Given it can expand payment options beyond what’s allowed in Apple Pay.

 

[davide_eu]

a$$le pay doesn't have to pay any fee, so there is space for anti trust fine!

 

[turbineseaplane]

Thank you EU

They are the only reason things like this keep happening

Credit where it's due

 

[alexandr]

So would this bring the Tap to Pay options for apps like Venmo and PayPal?

 

[yanksfan114]

As much as look forward to different use cases and increased competition over this change, I worry this will fragment Apple Wallet. I'll be so mad if, for example, Amex or LifeTime or any of my other passes don't work in the Wallet app or with Apple Pay anymore because they want me to go into their app to use them. Pros and cons to this but we'll see how it shakes out.

 

[JPack]

Finally. There really wasn't much reason to lock it down, other than to grease Apple's hands through Apple Pay.

Consumers will ultimately decide which payment method wins out: the app offered by financial institutions or Apple Pay.

 

[ApostolisApo]

Complicated feelings here: (unless you are a fanboy).

I am satisfied with Apple Pay and I hope that each bank's implementation is as smooth as Apple's one because otherwise this is a setback for us, users. (And that we are not forced to maintain multiple 3rd party wallets)

On the other hand if Apple weren't that dictatorial about NFC, the EU would not be forced to issue such a regulation, so overall I think that this regulation is a necessary evil at worst.

 

[ProbablyDylan]

This is great news. Forget about P2P payments - this is big for transit, hotels, students and workers that need to "tap" in for building access.

This only makes iPhone more useful going forward.

 

[turbineseaplane]

if Apple weren't that dictatorial about NFC, the EU would not be forced to issue such a regulation

Exactly why folks should blame Apple, not the EU (or any other governing body)

Apple's behavior is the root cause of all the regulatory intervention

 

[con2apple]

What the fungus. They can simply abuse Apple's performance and exploit customers.

It would be like advertising for Walmart in Cosco and at the same time legally sending thieves around to steal credit cards.

That's the way it is.
I read it under every ‘Apple VS EU/Spotifiy/Epic/whatever’ article.

 

[diego.caraballo]

Let's refrain the enthusiasm until Apple shares how much the fees are.

 

[whitby]

I must admit to being completely perplexed by Apple’s reluctance to allowing the use of the NFC hardware by third parties in the iPhone. I know we need some protection from malevolent third party developers but to only allow Apple to use it seems somewhat counter productive. I applaud the decision to allow third party access and hope to see some new uses for the iPhone that will make it more useful. It always seem we have to force Apple to get them to give us full access to hardware we purchased. It generally points to the hard fact that the iPhone is a Trojan horse designed to allow Apple and only Apple to provide services that they can monetize at a later date.

 

[jgreg728]

This is fine as long as Apple Pay stays an option. Taking that option away from the hundreds of millions of users in favor of a separate app isn't a good thing either. I don't want to set a different wallet app to every single card I own.

 

[mdatwood]

A win for consumers! Thank you, EU! (From North America)
I feel it would benefit all of us in the long run. Given it can expand payment options beyond what’s allowed in Apple Pay.

Finally. There really wasn't much reason to lock it down, other than to grease Apple's hands through Apple Pay.

Consumers will ultimately decide which payment method wins out: the app offered by financial institutions or Apple Pay.

My concern is that banks will pull their cards from Apple Pay and now I'm opening 5 different apps in order to use tap to pay. IMO, that's not a win for consumers and is a big step backwards.

 

[benedetti]

(…) and pay the associated fees.

Apple, you mean charging every time nfc chip fires up ? Hope not.
It’s like renting a hardware.

 

[CrysisDeu]

Still too much work and process.
I just want my phone to copy my nfc cards so I can leave them at home

 

[MNWildFan]

This is fine as long as Apple Pay stays an option. Taking that option away from the hundreds of millions of users in favor of a separate app isn't a good thing either. I don't want to set a different wallet app to every single card I own.

And I don't think it's going anywhere

Why on earth would they just strip that away from all of us when it's wildly successful

This in essence is just an extension to that

 

[Phillyfinest89]

all part of the let loose tagline.

 

[whitby]

This is fine as long as Apple Pay stays an option. Taking that option away from the hundreds of millions of users in favor of a separate app isn't a good thing either. I don't want to set a different wallet app to every single card I own.

Agree. Android phones seem to be able to manage this and it works well enough. I suspect we could end with a number of wallets each able to support the normal credit and debit cards but with some special flavor of the day that makes one particular wallet more attractive.

i am more interested in the other possible NFC apps such as car ‘keys’, access systems etc. At the moment a lot depend on BT/WiFi/QR codes etc. NFC technology makes this much more transparent and easier to use.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

The NFC chip is useful for a lot more than just payments!

I have to tap my badge six times just to get to my desk in the morning, and probably another couple dozen times throughout the day to move around the building. While I have to always visibly wear my badge, I would still like to be able to tap my phone, or Apple Watch, to go through doors or quickly login to our company terminals. Android users can already do that here, while iPhone users can't.

 

[coolfactor]

a$$le pay doesn't have to pay any fee, so there is space for anti trust fine!

You know that's nonsense. There are still significant costs associated with Apple Pay infrastructure and maintenance. It's not some magical "free" feature of the iPhone. It is backed by real cold-hard costs that need to be recovered.

 

[I7guy]

Complicated feelings here: (unless you are a fanboy).

[..]

And a critic. Not easy - cognitive dissonance rules. But score one for safety and security. Score one for the big banks who can now withdraw from Apple Pay and force you to use their wallet and loss of anonymity for the consumer and maybe score one for the consumer.

Give credit to the away for enabling more big business and less American tech.👍

 

[mdatwood]

And I don't think it's going anywhere

Why on earth would they just strip that away from all of us when it's wildly successful

This in essence is just an extension to that

Have you dealt with banks lately? They will do anything to save a penny regardless of customer experience.

 

[turbineseaplane]

It would be like advertising for Walmart in Cosco and at the same time legally sending thieves around to steal credit cards.

It's nothing like that at all