In Pictures: Top 25 network and IT industry stories of 2012

Got change for a cellphone?

Mobile payments gained momentum in 2012, though Apple’s lack of near-field communications support in the iPhone disappointed some. Big retailers such as Walmart and Target joined forces to form the Merchant Customer Exchange, a mobile payment network that will compete with the already available Google Wallet and Isis (backed by AT&T Mobility, T-Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless). Startup Square reined in $200 million more in venture funding and has processed some $8 billion in mobile payments over three years. However, there’s still work to be done: MCX is working on its platform, but has not publicly shared any target dates for the system to launch.