Visa announces partnerships for new mobile payment services on Android devices

These services will be enabled on through apps from banks and other financial institutions on the Google Play Store. The apps will enable you to pay with your Visa account from your phone:

Following a one-time enrollment process, customers of participating financial institutions who download and install the application will be able to pay in-store with their Visa accounts by waving their Android mobile phone in front of a contactless reader. These capabilities are an integral part of Visa Digital Solutions, a comprehensive suite of offerings that facilitate secure payments across a broad range of Internet-connected devices and wearables.

Apps from BBVA Cuscal have already launched their apps. Applications from Banco do Brazil, PNC Bank, N.A., and U.S. Bank are all expected in the near future.Visa's new payment service partnerships are an outgrowth of Visa Digital Solutions, an initiative launched by the company last year. It includes Visa's own SDK, their Token Service, and their support of Host Card Emulation, which allows payment information to be validated and stored off-site, making NFC payments more widely available.

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Nokia: Imaging SDK set for Android Nokia X Platform

NOKIA HAS REVEALED to The E-Information that its Imaging software development kit (SDK) likely will come to its Nokia X platform, enabling developers to build high-end photography apps for its low-end, Android-based smartphones.Nokia's Imaging SDK allows developers to create imaging apps for Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8.1, such as Nokia's own Creative Studio app that it boasts was built using the developer kit.However, Windows Phones didn't feature heavily at this year's Mobile World Congress (MWC), as Nokia instead focused on showcasing its Android-based Nokia X smartphone line, comprising the Nokia X, Nokia X+ and Nokia XL.While you'll find some of Nokia's usual apps onboard, such as Music and Here maps, there are none of the high-end camera applications found on the Nokia Lumia 1520 and Lumia 1020 handsets, due to the Nokia X devices' low prices. However, Nokia said that its Imaging SDK might appear on the Nokia X range "when the time is right".During an interview with The INQUIRER, Amit Patel, VP of developer relations at Nokia, said that the firm hopes to open the Imaging SDK to developers working on Nokia X apps, with imaging still a "key differentiator" for the firm. Patel said, "On the hardware side, it's bill of materials, so you may not get a Nokia X handset with a 41MP camera. However, the important thing will be the software manipulation and imaging features, which is going to be something that we can bring down to the low end when the time is right.

"A lot of those software techniques are actually portable from the high end to the low end. If you've got a reasonable processor in the device, you can run a lot of those capabilities. Imaging is of course one of the key differentiators, not just on the Lumia side, but in the affordable smartphone space as well."

During our interview, Patel also spoke about what developers can expect when submitting apps to the Nokia X Store, promising that the firm will carefully vet apps before they are approved. Thanks to this thorough apps validation process, he added that out of 100,000 Android apps tested for the Nokia X, nine percent were found to contain malware.

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Nike hiring Android SDK developers suggests more compatibility lies ahead

Nike has announced it is advertising for Android SDK developers, suggesting the long-term monogamous relationship with Apple could be coming to an end.Thanks to the Bluetooth LE functionality offered by Apple, Nike has previously used iOS as the only mobile platform compatible with its devices such as the Fuel Band SE and running trainer sensors.However, the release of Android KitKat has now brought Bluetooth LE connectivity to the Android platform and it looks like Nike is ready to jump on board.The listing advertises for nine Android developers to join Nike, one of which is a job on the Nike+ APR team to build an Android SDK “for use in any Android application that integrates with Nike+", to help build the "future of activity measurement for internal and external clients".Current Nike apps use the Android SDK so the Android SDK build job is an important one, as it means a new Nike Android SDK to allow Android devices and third-party movement sensors to use Nike.It might even mean we see an Android-specific app similar to Move for the iPhone 5S. Either way, it looks like it should be an interesting year for Nike and Android.

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