Intel inks deal with French NFC chip maker

Intel doesn’t have much of a presence in the mobile phone market right now, but that could change soon. The Santa Clara-based company announced recently that it has reached a deal with Inside Secure in which the French chip maker will supply Intel with NFC chips for upcoming products. “We are highly interested in NFC but we are not announcing any product plans at this time,” an Intel spokeswoman told The Wall Street Journal, noting that Intel might include Inside Secure’s technology in future reference designs. Google Wallet emerged as one of the first NFC-based mobile payment systems to launch in the United States, but it’s only available on one handset, the Nexus S, and is only currently supported by Sprint. Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile and AT&T have invested in a joint initiative called ISIS that is only in the testing phase right now, although Verizon Communications CEO Lowell McAdam said ISIS will begin a “significant rollout” in the coming year.

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