Windows Phone 7 Rumored with NFC?

One of the hottest technologies around is NFC.  Near Field Communication allows devices to communicate to other devices using short waves.  The reason this technology has caught fire has been its use in mobile credit card payments.  Another upcoming phone may be rolling out with full NFC capabilities.

Last week we told you about iPhone 5 rumors that suggested NFC may be a part of the much anticipated smartphones.  Last December, the Google phone Nexus S was released with NFC capabilities, of course running on the Android OS.  Today, two anonymous sources have confirmed that the upcoming Windows Phone from Microsoft will be NFC capable.

From Bloomberg:

Microsoft plans to include mobile-payment technology in new versions of its operating system for smartphones as part of an effort to narrow Google Inc.’s lead in handset software, said the people, who asked to remain anonymous because the features aren’t public. The first devices boasting these features may be released this year, the people said.

According to technological researchers Gartner Inc, mobile payments may be used in 245 billion dollars worth of transactions in 2014, up from $32 billion in 2010.  It is obvious that NFC and mobile payments is something that consumers desire.  Companies like Verifone that build POS terminals are beginning to include NFC in all new models.  Smartphones capable of providing reliable NFC might have an edge in the future market.

According to a study by the IDC, the Windows Phone will lose handily to Android, iPhone and Blackberry in 2011.  They also suggest that with Nokia’s adoption of the Windows Phone to replace Symbian, 2015 may see Microsoft pull into second place in the market, with over 20% of the share.  Adding mobile payments to the mix may help them out even more.