Still a nascent technology, many brands are emerging at CES 2012 with a focus on mobile commerce. Though Google Wallet certainly got the jump start on many other consumer electronics and financial brands, the emergence of a significant (and fragmented) competitive set demonstrates how far off widespread use will be.

The underlying Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, however, is the highlight of the movement. Credit card brands including MasterCard (PayPass), American Express and Visa are scurrying to make joint ventures with the the most major consumer electronics brands. Intel has been working with MasterCard PayPass (also used by Google Wallet) in order to begin integrating technology and projecting future use by merchant ultrabook users. HP has unveiled Spectre, an NFC-powered, Gorilla Glass surfaced ultrabook. Sony has announced its introduce of four new Droid-based Xperia smartphones, all of which will be armed with NFC as well.

Though technology enthusiasts are viewing devices with NFC to be the key to the mass market paying with mobile devices, it seems more likely that the technology will first be widely adopted for other purposes: sharing files wirelessly with other users; playing music wirelessly on speakers and headphones; and even unlocking classified vaults and doors (see HID Global and Yale Locks & Hardware’s developments).

As consumers are increasingly armed with mobile devices and ultrabooks armed with NFC, there will emerge some exciting opportunities to weave NFC through our brand experiences.