This is big: Google opened up Android 4.4 KitKat to allow access to the NFC chip to Android apps and not just the trusted execution environment on the secure element.

What it means: any issuer, developer, 3rd party, current 3D Secure vendor, Payment Services Provider, etc. can create a mobile wallet application that can present credit card information to the NFC and allow the user to use the card information for payment. This might mean that traditional trusted service managers (companies that are authorized to provision the secure element on the mobile phone, like Gemalto, FirstData, CorTSM, etc.) may face fierce competition from really anyone who wishes to provision cards to the phone. Mobile network operators can now be easily cut from the payment chain, too.