Apple will give third-party developers access to the iPhone’s NFC chip in iOS 18.1 to enable contactless transactions and other features outside the Apple Pay and Apple Wallet ecosystem. The innovation will be available not only in the EU, but also in several other countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Great Britain and the USA. The list of countries will be expanded in the future.
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Apple’s decision was a response to the European Union’s Digital Markets Act, which requires large tech companies to open up their ecosystems to third-party developers. As part of this update, as reported by 9to5mac.com, iPhone users will be able to use the NFC chip to conduct contactless transactions through third-party applications.
In its official statement, Apple clarified that the NFC chip in the iPhone can be used for a variety of purposes, such as payments, car keys, student IDs, house and hotel keys, and more. With the release of iOS 18.1, developers will be able to implement support for this feature in their applications using the new API for NFC and Secure Element (SE). There are plans to support government ID cards in the future.
Apple added that to integrate the new solution into applications, developers will need to enter into a commercial agreement with Apple, request access to NFC and SE, and pay the appropriate fees. The company has not disclosed the details or specifics of these fees at this time.
IPhone users will also have the ability to install third-party apps as their primary method for contactless transactions through the Settings section of their device. Additional information about new features and instructions for developers are published on the official Apple website for developers.