Apple burst onto the mobile payments scene with the launch of an NFC-enabled phone and Apple Pay, which could transform the much-hyped technology.

Why are we talking about this now?

Hype around mobile payments has existed for years but the technology has failed to take off. However, this could all be about to change now Apple has unveiled its iPhone 6, which comes complete with near-field-communications technology.

Shoppers will be able to pay for goods in-store using the Apple Pay function by holding the phone near a contactless reader and using fingerprint technology without the need to unlock the iPhone or launch an app.

Apple reassures users that all payment information will be kept private, encrypted and stored securely on the phone rather than on the cloud.

Who are the other players in the mobile payments market?

The market is fragmented as credit card companies and telecoms firms attempt to muscle in on the territory. Services include Visa’s V.me, MasterCard’s MasterPass, EE’s Cash on Tap, Zapp, Weve and US-based SoftCard (formerly known as Isis). All have a different proposition, which can leave consumers bamboozled by choice. The mobile operators package their services on the phone, while others use ‘host card emulation’, which stores information on the cloud.

Is there an appetite for mobile payments among consumers?

Research from Datamonitor suggests there are many early adopters waiting in the wings who would use such technology. The global study found that 17.6%of consumers are ready to adopt mobile proximity payments as soon as they are available.

Sam Murrant, consumer payments analyst at Datamonitor, says London is ahead of the rest of the UK when it comes to contactless technology and that is only going to accelerate with the launch of contactless payment on the London Underground.

Murrant explains there is at present a “chicken and egg” situation. Consumers are not using the tech because of a lack of merchants installing contactless readers, while merchants need to have enough consumers using the tech to justify installing it.

Will this be the time when mobile payments finally takes off?

“It will take off but it is going to take a while because the market is still pretty small despite the efforts of card schemes and the telcos,” explains Murrant. “It will be helped out by Apple’s branding, as a company they have quite the track record of coming to markets and transforming them.”