Contrary to predictions of analysts for years, Apple has not added a near-field communications technology to its iPhone series. Industry experts have long waited for Apple to concentrate on the development of touch-less mobile payments for years. The tech giant did not appear interested in including the feature not until now. According to recent information, Apple has been working its Wallet application developing a mobile payment not only beneficial to users but also to credit card companies.

According to Morgan Stanley (via Investor's Business Daily), it is likely that Apple will not include the NFC as part of its iWallet application. The company predicted that Apple wants to strengthen ties with credit card companies like MasterCard, Visa including American Express. The move is part of the company's bid to develop and incorporate a mobile payment system starting with the iPhone 6.

If Apple pushes through this successfully then the company will be challenging retail consortium MCX and e-Bay's PayPal. The "digital wallet" payment industry has been an appealing venture for many wireless phone companies, credit card networks and banks. Even Google has taken an interest over the matter.

What gives Apple a comparative advantage is its iTunes database. The company caters to around 600 million users worldwide through its iTunes. Users have connected their credit card accounts to the application for years turning Apple into a formidable player once it ventures into mobile payment systems.

The release of the iPhone 6 could introduce Apple's bid to the NFC and mobile payment industry. Smittipon Srethapramote, a Morgan Stanley analyst shares: "Several news sites (including NFC World) have cited sources that Apple was working with China UnionPay to include an NFC payment application from the latter in Passbook."

"If true, they would suggest Apple is making significant moves to leverage the card networks' reach to create a unique and wide-ranging payment experience within the next iteration of iOS and the next iPhone model." The analyst added.

Morgan Stanley has also previously predicted that Apple may include the NFC chip in its upcoming devices. This should transform the technology into an integral part of the mobile payments strategy according to Apple Insider. The site also obtained an investor's note from anlayst Craig Hettenbach that NFC can be an "inflection point" because of the patent filings, potential licences and new networks from Apple.