Near Field Communication Forum Begins Work on Host Controller Interface Specification.

WAKEFIELD, Mass. -- The NFC Forum, http://www.nfc-forum.org, a non-profit industry association advancing Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, announced today that it has begun work to develop a specification for a Host Controller Interface (HCI) between NFC contactless controllers and electronic devices' application processors. The HCI specification is planned for release in 2008.

When completed, the NFC Forum's Host Controller Interface will be a logical interface, allowing an NFC front end to communicate directly with an application processor and multiple secure elements in various electronic devices such as cell phones, PDAs and PC peripherals, enabling faster integration of NFC functionality.

The Forum's HCI will cover all NFC operational modes, including reader/writer, peer-to-peer and card emulation. The HCI may be implemented over relevant physical interfaces, including Serial Peripheral Interface Bus (SPI), Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C), Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART), Universal Serial Bus (USB) and others. The interface between the NFC controller and the Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) or SIM card is being specified by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and is outside the scope of the Forum's HCI specification work.

About Near Field Communication Technology and Applications

Near Field Communication (NFC) is a standards-based, short-range wireless connectivity technology that enables simple and safe two-way interactions among electronic devices. NFC technology allows consumers to perform contactless transactions, access digital content and connect devices with the simplicity of a single touch.

Near Field Communication (NFC) technology provides global interoperability of contactless identification and interconnection technologies. NFC operates in the 13.56 MHz frequency range, over a typical distance of a few centimeters. The underlying layers of NFC technology are based on ISO, ECMA, and ETSI standards. NFC technology is supported by the world's leading communication device manufacturers, semiconductor producers, network operators, IT and services companies, and financial services organizations. NFC is compatible with hundreds of millions of contactless cards and readers already deployed worldwide.

About the NFC Forum

The NFC Forum, www.nfc-forum.org, was launched as a non-profit industry association in 2004 by leading mobile communications, semiconductor and consumer electronics companies. The Forum's mission is to advance the use of Near Field Communication technology by developing specifications, ensuring interoperability among devices and services, and educating the market about NFC technology. The Forum's 110+ global member companies currently are developing specifications for a modular NFC device architecture, and protocols for interoperable data exchange and device-independent service delivery, device discovery, and device capability.

The NFC Forum's Sponsor members, which hold seats on the Board of Directors, include leading players in key industries around the world. The Sponsor members are: HP, MasterCard International, Microsoft Corp., NEC, Nokia, NXP Semiconductors, Panasonic, Renesas Technology, Samsung, Sony Corporation, and Visa International.