Barcelona, 25 July. – T-mobilitat will soon be usable for validating tickets with iPhone devices as well. Until now, mobile support for ticket validation has only been available on Android devices with NFC technology, although card recharging and consultation can be done with both types of smartphones. In Catalonia, it is estimated that 22% of people use this type of phone.

For the past two and a half years, mobile validation for T-mobilitat has been available on Android devices with NFC technology. Since then, various discussions have been held with Apple to extend this technology to its devices.

After the EU and Apple reached an agreement last January to open this technology to physical stores, excluding its use for public transport access, the EU established a claims period.

The ATM, a consortium formed by the Government of Catalonia, the Barcelona City Council, and the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB), was the only entity in the public transport sector to submit claims, stating that public transport access should also be able to use this technology.

A few days ago, the EU responded, notifying that these claims had been accepted and incorporated into the final agreements. For this reason, Apple has announced that it will allow other companies and services to access its NFC technology.

This decision is part of the legal commitments made with the European Commission to resolve accusations of abuse of a dominant position in the mobile payments sector through NFC.
Margrethe Vestager, Vice President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Competition, confirmed that the commitments made by Apple are legally binding and will be monitored by a trustee appointed by Apple, who will regularly report to the Commission over the next 10 years.

The application currently developed for the Android system is already in development for validation with iOS technology, based on the technological parameters recently established by Apple as a result of this decision.

Following the integration, T-mobilitat users with iPhones will be able to enjoy the same convenience and security in their validations as Android users. This improvement is great news for all public transport users, who will now be able to choose from all contactless validation options and, if desired, dispense with the physical card.

The Minister of Territory and President of the Barcelona ATM, Ester Capella, stated: “We are very pleased with this decision, as after many efforts, more people will finally be able to benefit from T-mobilitat. We have always advocated for the need for inclusive and accessible technology for everyone, and this is a great step forward in that direction.”

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