Contactless Smart Cards, RFID, Payment, Transit and Security

Contactless smart card market to grow by 33% in three years

Friday, March 27, 2009

Rising applications of smart cards in various fields, including security, payment and ticketing, is expected to spur a 33% growth rate in contactless cards over the next three years, according to a report from a research firm based in India.

In its “Smart Card Market Forecast to 2012,” RNCOS notes that the contactless smart card industry will be least affected by the current global economic crisis.


Factors such as EMV compliance, enhanced security features and ease of use with minimal human intervention will continue to fuel growth in contactless adoption, the report says. Increasing usage of Internet or payment terminals such as ATMs or point of sale systems will also boost contactless adoption as it offers secure and fast transactions.

However, the future of smart card market depends to a large extent on its compatibility with existing systems. Smooth integration of smart cards with the existing legacy systems makes it a cost saving and effective security tool, which will boost the application of smart card market in near term.

The report breaks the global smart card industry into three areas of the world: the Americas, Europe Middle East and Africa and Asia Pacific. [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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Reportlinker.com expects the global smart card market to grow 12 percent through 2014, it says in a new forecast report, according to ATM Marketplace.

“Smart Card Market Forecast to 2014” is a global look at the shipment of smart cards. Reportlinker.com estimates that shipments will be around 6.1 billion units in 2011, an 11% increase over 2010.

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Findings from an IMARC Group study reveal that the demand of smart cards in the automatic fare collection system in India is expected to grow exponentially in the next five years.

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India transport operator Ahmedabad Janmarg Ltd. has launched a smart transit card for commuters traveling on the region’s bus system, according to ISO&Agent.

The agency began a six-month trial and August 2010 followed by a soft and silent launch in January 2012. The card is available now for a nonrefundable fee of 25 rupees ($.50 US cents) and allows commuters to travel for up to 100 minutes on one bus, for the minimum fare.

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StarChip and CEA-Leti have inked a partnership agreement to develop a contactless front end for smart card applications.

The partnership includes technology and know-how transfer to StarChip. With this combined experience in secure integrated circuit development and contactless technology, StarChip will roll out state-of-the-art smart card products to enable applications in transport, banking and identity.

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India is emerging as one of the world’s fastest growing smart card markets, according to a new research report by RNCOS. With more than one billion in population and increasing modern application areas, India is anticipated to grow at a compound annual growth rate of approximately 15% during 2011-2014.

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