AirTag was a French startup that was acquired by Morpho, at the time a Safran subsidiary, in 2015. [1] [2] It was a mobile shopping and payments provider. [3] [4]
AirTag was founded in 2006 by Jérémie Leroyer, Cyrille Porteret, Cedric Nicolas and Gunnar Graef. As of late 2012, investors had provided €6 million in seed capital, [5] following a second-round in 2011 when it secured €4 million. [6]
In October 2008, AirTag launched what it called the first NFC software development kit (SDK). It included an NFC reader and four types of NFC tags. [7] [8] In 2012, the company launched another SDK. This one included hardware for smartphone-based payments. [9]
In 2009, AirTag and its partner Netsize launched Airtag Pad, an in-store terminal for clients to check their loyalty points, ask about tailored products, etc. Reebok hired it for its line of Go Sport stores. [10]
Nokia C7, the world's first smartphone with an NFC chip, was able to pick up loyalty points and discount coupons on the phone, through a partnership with AirTag. [11]
AirTag built McDonald's France smartphone app GoMcDo [12] which was one of the first to integrate with Apple's Passbook soon after the latter's initial launch with iOS 6 in 2012. [13] [14] [15]
In 2012, Carrefour's mobile app for near-field communication (NFC) purchasing was built by AirTag. [16] In 2013, French newspaper L'Express ranked AirTag among the top 30 French internet startups. [17] That same spring, AirTag launched KFC’s first mobile wallet to order and pay via smartphone; [18] three months later, 90% of those installing the app were placing orders through it. [19] Late that year, AirTag admitted it was not profitable. [5]
In 2014, the company had 50 employees when it launched mobile commerce applications for Dia France [20] [21] [22] and for Brioche Dorée. [23]
On November 28, 2018, the sole shareholder IDEMIA Identity et Security France [24] (Courvevoie) decided to dissolve Airtag early without liquidation. [25]
Whereas AirTag said it launched the first NFC SDK in late 2008, industry magazine RFID Update said at the time that there were pre-existing SDK's from Nokia and from Alvin Systems. [7]
A smartphone, often simply called a phone, is a mobile device that combines the functionality of a traditional mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multimedia playback and streaming. Smartphones have built-in cameras, GPS navigation, and support for various communication methods, including voice calls, text messaging, and internet-based messaging apps.
Mobile payment, also referred to as mobile money, mobile money transfer and mobile wallet, is any of various payment processing services operated under financial regulations and performed from or via a mobile device. Instead of paying with cash, cheque, or credit card, a consumer can use a payment app on a mobile device to pay for a wide range of services and digital or hard goods. Although the concept of using non-coin-based currency systems has a long history, it is only in the 21st century that the technology to support such systems has become widely available.
Near-field communication (NFC) is a set of communication protocols that enables communication between two electronic devices over a distance of 4 centimetres (1.6 in) or less. NFC offers a low-speed connection through a simple setup that can be used for the bootstrapping of capable wireless connections. Like other proximity card technologies, NFC is based on inductive coupling between two electromagnetic coils present on a NFC-enabled device such as a smartphone. NFC communicating in one or both directions uses a frequency of 13.56 MHz in the globally available unlicensed radio frequency ISM band, compliant with the ISO/IEC 18000-3 air interface standard at data rates ranging from 106 to 848 kbit/s.
Proximity marketing is the localized wireless distribution of advertising content associated with a particular place. Transmissions can be received by individuals in that location who wish to receive them and have the necessary equipment to do so.
A digital wallet, also known as an e-wallet or mobile wallet, is an electronic device, online service, or software program that allows one party to make electronic transactions with another party bartering digital currency units for goods and services. This can include purchasing items either online or at the point of sale in a brick and mortar store, using either mobile payment or using a laptop or other personal computer. Money can be deposited in the digital wallet prior to any transactions or, in other cases, an individual's bank account can be linked to the digital wallet. Users might also have their driver's license, health card, loyalty card(s) and other ID documents stored within the wallet. The credentials can be passed to a merchant's terminal wirelessly via near field communication (NFC).
Contactless payment systems are credit cards and debit cards, key fobs, smart cards, or other devices, including smartphones and other mobile devices, that use radio-frequency identification (RFID) or near-field communication (NFC) for making secure payments. The embedded integrated circuit chip and antenna enable consumers to wave their card, fob, or handheld device over a reader at the point-of-sale terminal. Contactless payments are made in close physical proximity, unlike other types of mobile payments which use broad-area cellular or Wi-Fi networks and do not involve close physical proximity.
Here Technologies is a Dutch multinational group specialized in mapping technologies, location data, and related automotive services to individuals and companies. It is majority-owned by a consortium of German automotive companies and American semiconductor company Intel whilst other companies also own minority stakes. Its roots date back to U.S.-based Navteq in 1985, which was acquired by Finland-based Nokia in 2007. Here is currently based in The Netherlands.
Amazon Pay is an online payments processing service owned by Amazon. Launched in 2007, Amazon Pay uses the consumer base of Amazon.com and focuses on giving users the option to pay with their Amazon accounts on external merchant websites. As of March 2021, the service became available in Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, India, the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States.
O2 Money is a range of financial services provided by O2 in the United Kingdom.
The Nokia C7-00 is a smartphone from the Nokia Cseries. It was introduced on 14 September 2010 and released in Q4 2010. The C7-00 features a 3.5-inch (89 mm), 640 x 360 pixel capacitive touchscreen and features 720p video recording, and was also the world's first smartphone to have NFC capability. Nokia's mobile phone business head Anssi Vanjoki called it the "sleekest" device in the world. Unlike the Nokia N8 flagship, the C7 has physical call and hangup buttons.
Apple Wallet is a digital wallet developed by Apple Inc. and included with iOS and watchOS that allows users to store Wallet passes such as coupons, boarding passes, student ID cards, government ID cards, business credentials, resort passes, car keys, home keys, event tickets, public transportation passes, store cards, and – starting with iOS 8.1 – credit cards, and debit cards for use via Apple Pay.
Payanywhere is a payments platform and app that allows merchants in the United States to accept credit and debit card payments while building customer relationships in-store, online, or on the go. Merchants may accept payments on their smartphone via a Bluetooth card reader or on an in-store “Storefront” solution featuring a tablet and stand, which was introduced on April 8, 2014. PayAnywhere offers credit card readers and apps that are compatible with both Apple and Android devices.
Augment is an augmented reality SaaS platform that allows users to visualize their products in 3D in real environment and in real-time through tablets or smartphones. The software can be used for retail, e-commerce, architecture, and other purposes.
Trainline Europe is the European arm of Trainline, Europe's leading train and coach app. Through either its web interface or mobile apps, customers can purchase tickets for a variety of European rail operators. It also has loyalty cards or vouchers and with e-ticket support. In 2016, Captain Train was acquired by Trainline.
Samsung Pay is a mobile payment and digital wallet service, operated by the South Korean company Samsung Electronics. It lets users make payments using compatible smartphones and other Samsung-produced devices, accessed using the Samsung Wallet app.
Tez was a mobile payments service by Google, targeted at users in India, later folded into the new Google Pay app on 28 August 2018. It operated atop the Unified Payments Interface, developed by the National Payments Corporation of India. The product was created as part of Google's Next Billion Users initiative led by Caesar Sengupta, former vice president and general manager, Payments & Next Billion Users, Google.
McDonald's France, colloquially called McDo, is the French subsidiary of the international fast food restaurant chain McDonald's. Its first location opened in 1972 by franchisee Raymond Dayan in Creteil, France, although the company itself still recognizes the first outlet as opening in Strasbourg in 1979. McDonald's France currently has over 1,485 restaurants operating nationwide, serving an estimated forty-six million people each week.
Touch 'n Go eWallet is a Malaysian digital wallet and online payment platform, established in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in July 2017 as a joint venture between Touch 'n Go and Ant Financial. It allows users to make payments at over 280,000 merchant touch points via QR code; pay for tolls, street parking, payment on e-hailing, car-sharing apps or taxis via RFID or PayDirect; pay bills; top-up mobile prepaid; pay for purchases on e-commerce websites or apps; order food delivery; perform peer-to-peer money transfers; renew car insurance and purchase unique insurance plans; and purchase movie, bus, trains, and airline tickets.
Johan Lelièvre, known by his pseudonym Jojol, is a French YouTuber specializing in high-tech.
Morpho, a Safran subsidiary, has completed its acquisition of AirTag, a French startup specialized in new payment solutions for mobile
Airtag designed a single-use virtual bank card to make online purchases [Airtag a conçu une carte bancaire virtuelle à usage unique pour réaliser des achats en ligne]
there have been few NFC development tools released. AIRTAG claims its kit is the first, but Nokia and Turkish firm Alvin Systems are also known to have released NFC SDKs
Airtag propose un forfait à partir de 140 euros par mois pour l'ensemble de la prestation. Seule marque à avoir transformé l'essai à ce jour, Reebok, pour son concept de «shop in the shop» dans les magasins Go Sport.
Nokia équipe son nouveau modèle C7 d'une carte de fidélité NFC en peer-to-peer. En partenariat avec Airtag, la marque propose de cumuler des points de fidélité et de télécharger des coupons de réduction à distance, depuis le mobile
Airtag a ainsi développé des solutions basées sur les smartphones, permettant de supprimer le passage en caisse. La société est notamment à l'origine du service GoMcDo
l'application GoMcDo pour iOS6 est l'une des première en France à disposer de la fonctionnalité "ajouter à Passbook"
Airtag, fournisseur de solutions de Mobile Shopping vient de rendre compatible son application de commande et de paiement développée pour McDonald's avec l'application Passbook de l'iPhone [...] l'application GoMcDo pour iOS6 est l'une des première en France à disposer de la fonctionnalité "ajouter à Passbook"
28 - AIRTAG - Informatique, télécom, internet
Jeremie Leroyer, chief executive of Airtag, which built the app for KFC […] in the UK on Wednesday, with the goal to extend it across the country, then to the US and the rest of the world
Récemment, l'entreprise de près de 50 salariés fondée en 2006, a mis en place l'application m-commerce de l'enseigne de distribution Dia, sur un modèle click & collect, sa spécialité
Effectif 4,5 millions d'euros, 50 personnes Clients McDonald's, Casino, Carrefour City
The app was developed in partnership with mobile shopping solutions provider Airtag and Groupe Le Duff