LIVE FROM GSMA NFC & MOBILE MONEY SUMMIT 2012: The mobile NFC market is gaining traction in several countries around the world, according to the EVP of Telecom for mobile security vendor Gemalto, Philippe Vallée, opening the way for operators and technology companies to take advantage.

"For several years NFC was an industry of pilots – that is no longer the case. This is the time to seed the market,” Vallée told delegates in Milan.

Vallée said there is now a second wave of countries adopting NFC technology in a big way, with Singapore, the US, Canada, UK and Italy following in the footsteps of France, Japan and South Korea. “This is moving very fast,” he said.

The Gemalto executive added that operators and vendors must therefore look at implementing NFC-enabled apps on mobile devices in addition to the more well-known uses of the technology. “NFC is not only about payment and transport,” he said.