The retail industry continues to be a hotbed of patent innovation. Activity is driven by convenience, technology, and security, and the growing importance of technologies such as QR codes, RFID technology, and cashierless stores. In the last three years alone, there have been over 156,000 patents filed and granted in the retail industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Online payments in retail: contactless payments. Buy the report here.
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According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which uses over 115,000 patents to analyze innovation intensity for the retail industry, there are 50+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Contactless payments is a key innovation area in online payments
Contactless payment systems allow customers to make secure payments through cards (credit, debit and smart cards), key fobs, or other devices, including smartphones, using radio-frequency identification (RFID) or near-field communication (NFC) technology.
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GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 100+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established retail companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of contactless payments.
Key players in contactless payments – a disruptive innovation in the retail industry
‘Application diversity’ measures the number of applications identified for each patent. It broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.
‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of countries each patent is registered in. It reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.
Patent volumes related to contactless payments
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
Capital One Financial is the leading patent filer in contactless payment systems. Some other key patent filers in the space include Dynamics, DeviceFidelity, Digimarc, iCashe, Blackhawk Network, Visa, and Tyfone. Eltropy, a leading platform for digital communications for community financial institutions (CFIs), announced a partnership with Tyfone allowing their mutual credit union and community bank clients to communicate with members more effectively. This will provide an enhanced accountholder experience within the Tyfone nFinia™ digital banking platform for browsers, mobile devices, wearables, and voice assistants.
In terms of application diversity, Digimarc leads the pack. Angel Playing Cards and CompoSecure stood in the second and third positions, respectively. By means of geographic reach, Angel Playing Cards held the top position, followed by West View Research and iCashe.
Contactless payment systems will increasingly gain popularity in the retail sector due to the convenience offered. Also, factors such as security and safety will play important roles in the technology’s quick adoption.
To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the retail industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Online Payments in Retail.
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GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.
GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
