INSIDE Contactless, Sagem Orga and TazTag Partner on New NFC Mobile Payment Device

INSIDE Contactless, Sagem Orga and TazTag Partner on New NFC Mobile Payment Device

Standalone Product for Making NFC Payments Delivers Full NFC Experience

AIX-EN-PROVENCE, RENNES, France and PADERBORN, Germany, April 22, 2010 – INSIDE Contactless, Sagem Orga (Safran Group) and TazTag today announced the joint development of a new method of delivering NFC payment functionality. Based on TazTag’s innovative TazCard®, the new device is currently in pre-alpha testing and shows the feasibility of an option that facilitates NFC contactless payment transactions while providing full NFC functionality for other applications as well.

“Today’s announcement marks a milestone in the development of commercial products for NFC payments and other NFC applications, and demonstrates the flexibility of our TazCard NFC platform,” said Eric Fouchard, CEO of TazTag. “TazTag is excited to be partnering with technology leaders like INSIDE and Sagem Orga to develop a variety of innovative solutions based on our TazCard platform.”

About the size of an ordinary credit card, the TazCard is a special-purpose, Java-based handheld device capable of supporting a variety of NFC applications, including payments. For this new payment device, INSIDE’s Java-based test payment application has been installed on a Single Wire Protocol (SWP)-enabled SIM card developed by Sagem Orga, which is connected to the INSIDE MicroRead NFC controller built into the TazCard. The TazCard also utilizes INSIDE’s Open NFC™ protocol stack. With its 3.5-inch color touch screen, the TazCard is able to provide the user with a full NFC experience for payment and other NFC transactions.

“This TazCard innovation clearly demonstrates the versatility of our NFC-enabled SIM card and our interest in reaching beyond mobile phone applications to provide secure elements for innovative NFC products,” said Jean-Christophe Tisseuil, head of marketing and business development, telecommunications product line at Sagem Orga. “We believe this device will enable card issuers to provide their customers with a viable NFC bridge–a key success factor towards market adoption of Mobile NFC payments.”

For Sagem Orga, the TazCard is part of the strategy to kick-start the NFC market with intelligent bridge-solutions. This SIM-based, SWP-compliant solution can be used for payment, identification, ticketing, loyalty and more. Through an accessory, it can be connected to MNO networks.

“Our partnership with TazTag is part of an ongoing commitment to support companies creating innovative NFC solutions based on the MicroRead platform,” said Charles Walton, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for INSIDE Contactless. “It also demonstrates the versatility of our Open NFC protocol stack to support a variety of innovative NFC-based products for consumers.”

INSIDE’s third-generation MicroRead NFC chip provides the most mature NFC implementation. The award-winning MicroRead suite combines third-generation silicon, multiple host interface support, the Open NFC protocol stack and APIs, a field-proven reference design and robust standards support.

About TazTag

TazTag is a new innovative company that creates and provides secured contactless solutions based on NFC and Zigbee. Its core activity is the creation of new, highly secured, multi-application contactless products such as the TazCard, TazBox and TazKiosk. The Java Development Framework supporting these products allows customers to easily harness the full potential of NFC and Zigbee to create new services, differentiate their offerings, generate new revenue streams and increase customer satisfaction. Visit TazTag at Cards Asia, Singapore and WIMA, Monaco.

About Sagem Orga

Sagem Orga is a global leader in the smart card industry. Its portfolio includes hardware, software, consulting and services, all focused on smart cards for the telecommunications, health, identification and banking sectors. As a subsidiary of Sagem Sécurité (Safran group), the world’s No. 1 in identification, Sagem Orga offers comprehensive integrated solutions designed to secure the digital and mobile community. The company has a workforce of over 2,100 people around the world and production facilities incorporating the latest technology in Germany, Brazil, Russia, Mexico and India. http://www.sagem-orga.com

About INSIDE Contactless

INSIDE Contactless leads the market in open-standard contactless innovation. The company has delivered more than 350 million contactless platforms worldwide, and its contactless payment and Near Field Communication (NFC) solutions power the next generation of payment, transit, identity and access control applications. INSIDE’s work in contactless standards and its 65 families of patents, including essential NFC patents, play a leading role in establishing industry direction. INSIDE is headquartered in Aix-en-Provence, France, with offices in Paris, Shanghai, Singapore, Warsaw, Seoul and San Francisco. For more information, please visit http://www.insidecontactless.com.

Contacts

For INSIDE Contactless:
Patrick Corman
Corman Communications, LLC
+1 (650) 326-9648
patrick@cormancom.com
http://www.cormancom.com

INSIDE company contact:
Geraldine Sauniere
Marcom Director
+33 (0) 4 42 39 33 01
gsauniere@insidefr.com

For Sagem Orga:
Mareike Blumentrath
Corporate Communications
+49 (0) 5251 889 1216
mareike.blumentrath@sagem-orga.com

For TazTag:
Eric Fouchard
CEO
+33 (0) 2 99 57 90 60
ef@taztag.com