Card Technology articles from July 2002

Card Technology archives from July 2002

A Time For Transparency.(Brief Article)
July 3, 2002... If you ask me how much I weigh, I might fudge a bit. We all like to make ourselves seem a little better than we are. The same is true for vendors. I've covered such industries as manufacturing software and automated teller machines, and it...

Techwatch.
July 3, 2002... Inside TechWatch... 800 Million Chinese ID Cards? Maybe. 8 A Hotel Chain Looks Ahead 10 Card Technology Calendar 13 Chip Cards Step To The Plate 14 Regional News 18 Copyright c 2002 Thomson Media....

Two Vendors Claim They're Number 1.(Gemplus International S.A. and SchlumbergerSema)(Brief Article)
July 3, 2002... Who's the leading shipper in the smart card industry? That all depends on how you measure it. The industry's two largest vendors, Gemplus International and SchlumbergerSema, both claim to be top dog, and they are basing those claims on the...

800 Million Chinese ID Cards? Maybe.("second-generation ID card")(Brief Article)
July 3, 2002... It would be the world's largest chip card program, and it appears to be edging closer to reality, but there remains uncertainty about China's plans to issue 800 million adult citizens a chip-based national ID card. Government officials...

A Hotel Chain Looks Ahead.(Millennium and Copthorne Hotels launches Millennium PartnerCards)(Brief Article)
July 3, 2002... The high cost of smart cards and the low penetration of smart card readers dampens many merchants' interest in using chip cards for loyalty schemes. Less-expensive magnetic-stripe cards usually win out. But in some regions of the world,...

Chip Cards Step To The Plate.(SmartFan cards benefit sports fans and teams)(Brief Article)
July 3, 2002... Baseball teams love season ticketholders who fork over thousands of dollars before the season even begins. Now several teams in the U.S. Major Leagues are testing a smart card designed to make life easier for these cherished fans at the same...

Letters To The Editor.
July 3, 2002... The Card Technology cover story for May, "Japan's Bold Bid for Smart Card Leadership," caused me to chuckle. The article could have been titled, "It's OK to Leave Home Without It." I realize the article addresses smart cards, rather than...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
July 3, 2002... The article "A Hot New Number In Access Control" in the June issue of Card Technology understated the number of PicoPass tags French semiconductor manufacturer Inside Contactless has shipped to a program in Mexico aimed at deterring auto theft....

Card Technology Calendar.
July 3, 2002... Sept. 2-5: CeBIT Asia-Shanghai Organized by Deutsche Messe AG For more information, contact Deutsche Messe at: Telephone: +49 511 89 33114 Fax: +49 511 89 33140 e-mail: infomesse.de Web site: www.messe.de Sept. 18-20:...

Regional News.
July 3, 2002... Europe * TIM Touts New SIMs: Italy's No. 1 GSM operator, Telecom Italia Mobile, recently launched a television advertising campaign touting the memory capacity of its new line of subscriber identity module smart cards, the largest on the...

A Biometric For The Mobile World.
July 3, 2002... With security concerns on the rise, it's no secret more companies and government agencies are planning to tighten control of their networks and physical premises. Some are considering incorporating biometrics into the new security systems. ...

A Chip In Every U.S. License?(driver's licenses could contain smart card chip)(Brief Article)
July 3, 2002... Few things would boost smart cards in the United States as fast as adding a smart card chip to the more than 200 million U.S. driver's licenses. That idea, discussed since Sept. 11 as a way to make driver's licenses more reliable identity...

'A Tough Year' Annual Smart Card Vendors Survey.
July 3, 2002... Slumping demand and falling prices for SIM cards made 2001 a bad year for most smart card vendors, who can expect, at best, a "transitional" year in 2002, say analysts. Most observers believe the industry will have to wait until 2003 to regain...

Revenue for top players (in millions of euros).(Brief Article)
July 3, 2002... Vendor 2001 Revenue 2000 Revenue % Change Gemplus 1,023 1,205 -15.1 SchlumbergerSema* 780 764 2.1 Oberthur...

What Major Vendors say they sold in 2001.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
July 3, 2002... (part 1 of 2) Vendor Microprocessor Cards % 2001 2000 Change SchlumbergerSema*' 198 152 30.3 Gemplus ...

Shipments by segment (microprocessor cards only).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
July 3, 2002... Segments 2001 Forecast 2002 % change SIM 390 415 6.4 Banking 140 170 21.4 Pay TV 25 35 40...

Loyalty Gets Physical.
July 3, 2002... Forget the hype about smart cards being an Internet play. Issuers pioneering chip-based loyalty programs are making sure their customers have plenty of physical-world opportunities to use their smart cards. Back when American Express rocked...

Merchants Team Up With Smart Cards.(Brief Article)
July 3, 2002... Only a handful of chip-based credit cards carry loyalty programs. But there are a growing number of merchant-issued chip cards, especially for rewards programs involving multiple retailers. For instance, in the Shetland Islands in the north...

Pros and Cons of Smart Cards for Loyalty.(Brief Article)
July 3, 2002... Pros Chip cards can carry multiple loyalty programs securely Instant rewards and multimerchant programs are more easily supported Card has more value because it can carry payment and other features Offline processing of...

Going Places With The E-Purse.
July 3, 2002... Several South Korean banking card issuers believe there's a future for the electronic purse, but only if hitched to the country's successful chip-based transit card systems. The electronic purse has been a bust just about everywhere it's...