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The number of contactless-payment terminals deployed globally could reach 13.5 million by the end of 2013, up from about 1 million currently, according to a forecast from United Kingdom-based IMS Research. In a report titled "The World Market for EFT-POS Terminals & Contactless Readers," the firm predicts the number of contactless-enabled terminals to grow more than six times faster than the overall payment-terminal market. "One of two terminals in 2013 will be shipping as contactless-enabled terminals, whether with peripheral equipment or, more likely, [contactless readers] integrated into them," IMS Research Director John Devlin tells CardLine Global. Such terminals would accept not only chip-enabled credit and debit cards but also mobile handsets loaded with Near Field Communication chips. Growth in contactless-payment terminal deployments will focus on such regions as North America, Western Europe and Japan, Devlin says. "Germany and Italy, not so much," he adds, noting consumers in those countries tend to use cash for transactions. The global recession could create a potential roadblock for the spread of contactless payments and terminal deployments, Devlin says. Overall, however, he expects the terminal market to improve. "After a downward blip in late 2008 and the first half of 2009, the overall market is now returning to growth," he says. "Those companies that have managed the economic downturn well are starting to invest in new technologies rather than just replacing essential POS equipment." While the credit crunch has not gone away, confidence is slowly returning, Devlin says. "I am seeing Tier 1 and 2 merchants now implementing new developments that had been temporarily shelved," he says. "Contactless is a prime example of this."
