'Virtually all' upcoming BlackBerrys to use NFC tech

Most new BlackBerry devices from RIM from now on will include near-field communication capabilities, the company's UK managing director has said.

Although RIM chief Jim Balsillie already revealed at Mobile World Congress that "many if not most" of 2011's BlackBerrys would have the short-range wireless technology (usually abbreviated as NFC) built in, Stephen Bates's words on Tuesday suggested that almost all upcoming RIM smartphones and tablets would include these capabilities.

"We're going to deploy NFC in virtually all of our devices," Bates said at a Westminster eForum on smartphones, tablets and apps, adding that NFC technology "creates new businesses, new markets and new revenue streams".

The GSM Association (GSMA), a major mobile industry body, said on 21 February that major operators around the world had agreed to implement NFC services by 2012. The technology is the same as that used in Oystercards and other smart travelcards, and in contactless bank payment cards.

At the same event in London on Tuesday, Bates said that "there are more users of Twitter on BlackBerry than on any other platform". It was not clear whether he meant only mobile platforms, and he did not provide statistics to back up the claim.