The mobile phone, which began as a wireless voice oriented communication device, has now evolved into a multi-faceted sophisticated gadget. Meanwhile, payment methods are continuing to develop as consumers demand greater security and convenience, with movement from cash to checks and credit cards and eventually to security-enhanced IC cards.

The convergence of mobile telecommunications and payment technology has led to the Ubiquitous Mobile Payment System ? a proximity payment system based on NFC technology which enables financial transactions on the mobile phones, regardless of the time and location.

To carry out this wide range of security sensitive applications it must be ensured that we have a protective environment to carry out the transactions. This is achieved by the usage of a Secure Element which is a smart card chip capable of storing multiple applications and could be in the form of a SIM card, secure memory card or an additional embedded smart card chip in the NFC mobile device. The USIM chip is a unique, personal, secure, portable and standardized smart card which is widely accepted as the most suitable Secure Element and also supported by the GSM association.

The demand for 3G phones which are equipped with the USIM chip is growing and won¡¯t be long before all the mobiles are NFC compatible. There are huge business opportunities for personalized NFC based USIM services. The mobile phone can emulate a cluster of cards and can act as a credit / debit card, a travel ticket, an id & access card, a health insurance card etc. These applications require the NFC environment to be dynamic allowing data to be read and updated real time regardless of time and place.

Over The Air (OTA) technology provides an effective secure communication and control mechanism for downloading applications and managing them wirelessly.