Non-functional Component
Apple’s new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus have near field communication (NFC) technology, but they don't work as intended in South Korea. NFC technology, which has been added to many Android smartphones including the Samsung Galaxy series a few years ago is widely used for transportation cards in Korea.
According to professional IT press such as the Cult of Mac on Sept. 16, Apple allowed the NFC chip installed in its products to be used by Apple only for at least a year, and prohibited developers from using this NFC chip for other purposes.
Apple avoided answering the question, “Would the restrictions on NFC usage be relieved after a year?”
From the perspectives of Korean consumers, this means that even though the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus have been launched in Korea, they cannot be used as NFC-based transportation cards.
Of course, this scenario becomes theoretically possible if Apple Pay comes to Korea and then supports transportation card services. However, this story seems quite impossible, considering the “Galapagos regulations” in Korea, especially regarding the financial and payment sectors.
Apple did not explain the reasons for such restrictions on NFC usage. Experts speculate that it was done to compete against Google Wallet.
Google Wallet started its service three years ago, but had difficulties in gaining popularity. If Apple lifts restrictions on NFC chip of its products including the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and Apple Watch, Google Wallet can freely use the NFC functions of Apple devices. Apparently, Apple does not like this idea.
For a while, only Android smartphones have been able to use Google Wallet. But after the release of the iOS app in September last year, it is possible to use Google Wallet in Apple devices with iOS higher than 6.0 even without NFC. However, the Google Wallet app for iOS does not support NFC-related functions such as making payments by touching the smartphone, and requires complicated processes including entering a password, which is similar to PayPal.
But considering the previous cases, Apple’s protective policies regarding NFC might change in the future. When Apple first introduced “Touch ID” in September last year, a verification technology using fingerprint recognition, it first restricted this function to its own services including iTunes. Apple lifted this restriction after a year. Starting from iOS8 to be released on September 17, third-party apps can use the Touch ID verification system.