Juniper Research has released a new report declaring 2011 a “watershed year” for NFC payments, despite retailers’ reservations about adopting the technology.

According to Juniper, the NFC payments market acceleration of 2011 revealed that many retailers are less convinced of the benefits of NFC payments over existing card technologies and are unwilling to invest in contactless infrastructure so soon after the transition to Chip and PIN.

Juniper suggests that education and “win-win” propositions from other ecosystem players are necessary to commit retailers to NFC payments.

“This is a critical time for the NFC retail payments market,” commented report author Windsor Holden. “Despite the significant progress being made today, the full potential of the market can only be fulfilled if all ecosystem players are equally committed and mobile wallet consortia remain in place. Our report analyses the various consortia models being formed today and which types are expected to endure.”