App turns Google Nexus phone into payment tool

From CNET News.com: Owners of Google's Nexus S smartphones can soon use the device to process mobile payments via near-field communications tech, via software from a company called Charge Anywhere.

Charge Anywhere's existing mobile payments application has already allowed owners of iPhone, BlackBerry, and Android devices to process credit card payments with their phones and a dedicated reader to swipe the cards.

But the latest version to the software, announced at yesterday's CTIA trade show, turns the Nexus S phone into a full mobile payment terminal. This means that owners can process MasterCard PayPass and Visa Blink payments remotely using the phone's built-in NFC technology.

Though the software update is ready, it hasn't been officially deployed yet. Dmitriy Lerman, Charge Anywhere's director of marketing, told CNET that his company currently can make the software available to large customers and will soon release it for all customers.

Near-field communications allows devices, such as mobile phones, to swap information when they're near each other. The technology is being touted as a wallet-free way for consumers to pay for items by using their smartphones to send payments directly from their bank accounts to a store terminal.

"The Charge Anywhere payment platform has always stayed ahead of the payment technology curve and by adding NFC payments ensures that our partnering financial institutions, mobile network operators, and distributors always have the most competitive advantage in delivering secure payment technology," Charge Anywhere CEO Paul Sabella said in a statement.

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