Radio Frequency Identification Technology for Logistics, Tagging and EPC

ePassport Fears Boost High-Security Providers' Bottom Lines

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Smartrac saw its financial results adorned with glitter and gold, thanks (at least partially) to the manufacturing of its secure RFID components and ePassport inlays.

Company revenues in first half of 2006 amounted to Euros 22.5 million, more than double compared with the same period in 2005, when revenue was Euros 8.3 million. The main contribution however came from the company’s ‘High Security’ segment (ePayment and ePassport), which increased its revenues to Euros 9.9 million, more than ten times greater than the same period last year.

But ePassports aren’t the only things making news, or generating buzz.

Christian Fischer, CFO of Smartrac, says growth may also be attributed to performance in areas including mass transportation, access systems and logistics. [end] 

The Smart Card Alliance Transportation Council has published a white paper examining how the transit industry can best make use of NFC technology.

“One of the major challenges facing transit agencies today is how to capitalize on the ever-growing popularity of mobile phones with a solid mobile strategy,” said Transportation Council Chairman Craig Roberts. “This white paper builds on the knowledge base developed in earlier white papers to foster a greater understanding of NFC technology, explain its role in the transit industry, and shed light on key issues facing the transit industry in developing a mobile strategy.”

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As some may recall back in June 2010, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) of New York launched tap-and-go contactless payments for commuters to enter select subway stations and participating bus lines using MasterCard PayPass-enabled terminals. Well, the results are in.

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The 25,000 VIPs, including athletes, coaches and officials, arriving for the summer Olympics in London through Heathrow International Airport will have a dedicated passport lane just for them when passing through immigration, according to a Daily Mail article.

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Visa made waves in August when it unveiled a road map to move the U.S. to EMV and then again in January when the company said that the country’s deployment wouldn’t be chip and PIN. Stephanie Ericksen, head of Authentication Product Integration at Visa USA, talks to Regarding ID’s Gina Jordan about the move and why the U.S. will have a different solution than what other typically associate with EMV. “One thing that we’re trying to clarify is there are many countries around the world that have adopted EMV chip technology, but it’s not chip and PIN,” Ericksen says.

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In an effort to streamline passenger security, Jakarta, Indonesia’s Soekarno-Hatta Airport has opened the country’s first biometric immigration gate.

Fingerprint biometric identification provider BIO-key International, Inc. and Oakwell Engineering Limited partnered to create the new gate, designed for use by passengers with electronic passports. Passengers submit their e-passports and authenticate with a fingerprint.

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A new report released by CAP Strategic Research gives insight into the airport of the future–and predicts that air travel may become less of a chore and more fun by 2025.

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