NFC Forum Calls for Breakthrough Solutions for Annual Competition

Developers of Innovative NFC Solutions to Compete for Cash Prizes; Awards
Ceremony to be held at WIMA on April 21
WAKEFIELD, Mass.--(Business Wire)--
The NFC Forum (http://www.nfc-forum.org), a non-profit industry association that
advances the use of Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, today announced a
call for entries for its NFC Forum Global Competition
(http://www.nfc-forum.org/events/2010_competition/). Now in its fourth year, the
Competition promotes the development and deployment of innovative and exemplary
NFC services by both commercial and academic developers. The Competition has
historically attracted scores of global entries spanning application areas as
diverse as healthcare, mobile social media, hospitality, online banking and
support for the disabled.

The Competition's Commercial Track recognizes the commercial solution judged
"The Best NFC Service of the Year 2010," while a Research Track honors the
academic organization that develops "The Most Innovative NFC Research Project of
the Year 2010." Three winners in each track will be awarded cash prizes.
First-place winners will receive 5000 euros, second-place 1500 euros and
third-place 1000 euros.

Entrants in the NFC Forum Global Competition can also benefit from global media
coverage, interest from industry leaders and venture capitalists, and the
opportunity to share ideas and forge relationships with other leading developers
from business and academia.

"Every year, the NFC Forum Global Competition attracts a rich and varied array
of entries that exploit the ease and power of NFC technology in new and exciting
ways," said Koichi Tagawa, chairman of the NFC Forum. "We at the NFC Forum are
delighted to provide this annual showcase for the world's most creative and
useful NFC solutions."

The Competition's Commercial Track is for business ideas that address a specific
market, business or consumer need or want. To enter, teams must submit a
business case document of no more than 3,000 words and a prototype or commercial
product. Commercial entries are evaluated on commercial viability and how
successfully and innovatively they meet the identified need using NFC
technology.

The Research Track is open to the academic community, including university
student teams and research institutions. Research track submissions require an
explanatory abstract of no more than 3,000 words that identifies the challenge
addressed and outlines the approach taken. Prototypes are preferred and
multimedia presentations are welcome; entries must not have been commercially
piloted previously. Research entries are judged on quality of design and their
creative and innovative use of NFC technology.

A team of reviewers will evaluate each entry, and 10 finalists from each track
will be announced on March 16, 2010. Each team of finalists will deliver a
presentation and live demonstration at the WIMA NFC Developers Summit
(http://www.wima-nfc.com) on April 21, 2010. Following these events, the jury,
composed of senior and recognized professionals and experts from academia and
sponsoring companies, will vote to select first-, second- and third-place
winners for each track.

The Competition`s Organizing Committee is now accepting entries; all final
proposals must be received by February 19, 2010. Fees per entry (excluding VAT)
are 200 euros for NFC Forum members, 350 euros for non-members, and 50 euros for
students and research institutions. Entry forms and competition details are
available now at: http://www.nfc-forum.org/events/2010_competition/. For further
details or questions about competition rules and entries, write to:
competition@nfc-forum.org.

Sponsorship opportunities for the NFC Forum Global Competition are now
available. Platinum sponsorship is available for 7500 euros, Gold sponsorship is
5000 euros and Silver sponsorship is 2500 euros. Equipment sponsorship is
available at no charge. Sponsorship of the NFC Global Competition offers an
array of benefits to participating organizations. Platinum, Gold and Silver
sponsors receive prominent co-branding on all competition marketing materials
and signage, and they also have the opportunity to judge the entries and help
select the winners. Each sponsor shares in the media attention generated by the
NFC Global Competition, which strengthens the sponsor`s perception in the
marketplace as a company at the forefront of one of today's fastest-growing
consumer technologies. For more information, visit
http://www.nfc-forum.org/events/2010_competition/competition_sponsorship/ or
write to: sponsorship@nfc-forum.org.

WIMA is a Platinum sponsor of the Competition. Over-C is a Gold sponsor, and
Stollmann E+V GmbH is a Silver sponsor.

About Over-C

Founded in 2001, Over-C is the leading provider of hosted Near Field
Communication software applications focused on the management of tag events,
from tag scan through the back office. Over-C's hosted solutions help companies
get the right data to the right person at the right time. Over-C is at the
forefront of development of both the technological and business potential of
NFC, and is committed to the provision of innovation, quality and
technology-based experience to all its customers. With clients in a broad range
of industries, Over-C consistently monitors around one million NFC activities
each month. For more information on Over-C, visit www.over-c.com.

About Stollmann E+V GmbH

Stollmann, http://www.stollmann.de/, based in Hamburg, Germany, is one of the
leading developers and suppliers of standard products and licensed products for
communications technologies such as NFC, Bluetooth, and ISDN. Stollmann's team
of 40 specialists develops protocol stacks, reference designs, and modules.
Stollmann provides a complete NFC Forum standard compliant protocol stack which
is chip and interface independent. Stollmann offers a complete JAVA JSR-257 API
for mobile phones, PDAs and smart phones, and an NFC kit, featuring an
easy-to-use interface, USB reader, and NFC tags, all complying with the most
recent NFC Forum standards. Support of upcoming NFC chips and interfaces with
unchanged Stollmann API is warranted.

About WIMA

WIMA is the leading international Conference & Exhibition exclusively dedicated
to NFC technology, bringing together industry leaders, start-up companies,
application developers, standards organisations, and research & educational
institutions to its annual event in Monaco. Book your agenda for WIMA 2010 - 4th
Global NFC Business & Technical Developers Summit from 20-22 April, featuring
the NFC Forum Global Competition Finals & Awards Ceremony, plus an exhibition
and demonstration floor packed with the latest most innovative NFC applications,
products and services, parallel Business & Technical conference tracks, NFC
Forum Programmes for Developers and in conjunction with NFC Research Lab
Hagenberg and VTT Technical Research Center Finland the NFC2010 IEEE Workshop.
Excellent networking guaranteed.

About Near Field Communication Technology

Near Field Communication (NFC) is a standards-based, short-range wireless
connectivity technology that enables simple and safe two-way interactions
between electronic devices. NFC technology allows consumers to perform
contactless transactions, access digital content and connect devices with the
simplicity of a single touch.

Near Field Communication (NFC) technology provides global interoperability of
contactless identification and interconnection technologies. NFC operates in the
13.56 MHz frequency range, over a typical distance of a few centimeters. The
underlying layers of NFC technology are based on ISO, ECMA, and ETSI standards.
NFC technology is supported by the world`s leading communication device
manufacturers, semiconductor producers, network operators, IT and services
companies, and financial services organizations. NFC is compatible with hundreds
of millions of contactless cards and readers already deployed worldwide.

About the NFC Forum

The NFC Forum, http://www.nfc-forum.org, was launched as a non-profit industry
association in 2004 by leading mobile communications, semiconductor and consumer
electronics companies. The Forum`s mission is to advance the use of Near Field
Communication technology by developing specifications, ensuring interoperability
among devices and services and educating the market about NFC technology. The
Forum`s 140 global member companies currently are developing specifications for
a modular NFC device architecture, and protocols for interoperable data exchange
and device-independent service delivery, device discovery and device capability.

The NFC Forum`s Sponsor members, which hold seats on the Board of Directors,
include leading players in key industries around the world. The Sponsor members
are: Innovision Research & Technology plc, INSIDE Contactless, MasterCard
Worldwide, Microsoft Corp., NEC, Nokia, NTT DOCOMO, Inc., NXP Semiconductors,
Panasonic, Renesas Technology, Samsung, Sony Corporation, STMicroelectronics and
Visa Inc.

Virtual, Inc.
Ruth Cassidy, +1 781-876-6239
rcassidy@virtualmgmt.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009