Payments Firm Backs 'Crazy' Offline Bitcoin Transactions ExperimentAs an Internet-based payment system, most bitcoin transactions today necessitate that users are online or otherwise can print and exchange private keys.
However, Romanian mobile payments provider Netopia mobilPay is now backing a proposal that strives for a middle path. Called OffCoin, the proposal is for a system that allows microSD cards in mobile phones to generate, store, transmit and delete bitcoin private keys.
In effect, OffCoin would be capable of moving digital currency between mobile phones without requiring users to be connected to the Internet or needing to pay the cost of using the bitcoin blockchain. By transacting with NFC, Bluetooth, QR codes or a combination of these technologies, Netopia suggests it can allow users to send and receive bitcoin without paying fees for sending funds over the bitcoin blockchain.
Full story: http://www.coindesk.com/netopia-internet-free-bitcoin-transactions/