The Federal Reserve has publicly released the 2010 Federal Reserve Payments Study that reveals "in greater detail increasing adoption of electronic alternatives for payments in the United States by consumers, businesses and governments. The study examined payments made between 2006 and 2009." READ MORE »

Isis, the joint venture between AT&T Mobility, T-Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless, has announced it will pilot the Isis mobile commerce program in Salt Lake City in early- to mid-2012. "Isis has also entered into an agreement with Utah Transit Authority (UTA) to make the entire UTA transit system Isis-enabled, marking the deployment of Isis as the first commercially available mobile transportation fare payment program in the U.S."

In related news, Bloomberg is reporting that Sprint will beginning deploying a competing NFC-based mobile payments solution later this year.

First Data and SK C&C USA, a pioneer in mobile commerce technology, have announced the commercial release of a Trusted Service Manager (TSM) solution.

The comprehensive First Data TSM solution is now available for enablement of Near Field Communication (NFC) devices for issuers, merchants and mobile network operators (MNOs) looking to quickly prepare consumers for the fast approaching mobile payment reality through the most scalable, cost-effective and secure service available today.

BilltoMobile has announced it will provide its exclusive Direct Mobile Billing platform for carrier billing to a new group of diverse companies, including Aeria games, Flirtomatic, Gala-Net, Lavalife.com, and Xtranormal. BilltoMobile is the only mobile payments company with direct connections to the top three U.S. mobile carriers -- AT&T, Sprint and Verizon Wireless -- providing merchants with access to 240 million wireless subscribers.

On the wires:

• Five of Top 10 Retail Banks Now Signed to Deploy Mitek Systems for Mobile RDC
• Western Union and Online Resources Team for Last Minute Payments
• 3Delta Systems Unveils the Power of Payment WorkSuite
• Bridge2 Solutions® Adds Virtual Gift Card Delivery Powered by Giftango
• Travelex Global Business Payments and Fundtech Launch International Payment Solution for Financial Institutions

On the web:

• BusinessWeek: Federal Reserve Must Face Bank Suit Over Credit Card Fee Rules