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Industry's first SD memory card with contactless smart card capabilities
08.11.2004Panasonic Develops Industry's First SD Memory Card With Contactless Smart Card Capabilities. Sample shipments of smartSD Card to begin in December 2004.
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., best known for its
Panasonic brand products, has developed the industry's first SD Memory Card with contactless smart
card capabilities. Called smartSD Card, the new SD Memory Card combines the convenience of
contactless data communication capabilities with large storage capacity and high security. The
company will position the smartSD Card as key to realizing the "ubiquitous network society" and
will strive to create new business opportunities not only in the device sector but also in the
system and solution service sectors. Sample shipments of the smartSD Cards will commence in
December 2004. Commercial shipments are expected to follow in the fall of 2005.
Smart cards are rapidly expanding into many new markets including finance, transportation, distribution, industry and government administrations and have been introduced in a wide variety of applications such as transport ticket payments, access control, electronic money and credit cards. In 2003, some 51 million smart cards were issued in Japan and the number is expected to rise to 340 million by 2010.* Meanwhile, since the introduction of the SD Memory Card in July 2000, 220 makers have announced over 2,600 SD Memory Card-compatible products and approximately 41 million SD Memory Cards were sold in 2003, attaining number one global market share in the memory card industry.
As smart cards become more convenient, the need for greater data capacity and high security has increased. The smartSD Card combines the advanced copyright protection, portability, and easy connectivity of the SD Memory Card with the con-venience of a contactless smart card, allowing the card to send/receive large amounts of data at high speed and with high security, thereby supporting a variety of new applications. The smart card in the smartSD Card uses non-volatile FeRAM (ferroelectric RAM), which enables high-speed data writing, five times faster than conventional EEPROM-based smart cards. The large-capacity flash memory in the smartSD Card can be used as an extra storage area for the smart card module and the stored data is protected by cipher technology. The secured extended memory also transfers data at the rate of about 600 Kbytes per second.
Offering large secure storage, authentication and contactless data communication capabilities, the new type of SD Memory Card can be used for a wider variety of smart-card applications. Mr. Masaki Akiyama, President, Panasonic System Solutions Company, said, "Our hope is to create new businesses deriving from the special features of the smartSD Card. These include corporate solutions dealing with information leakage prevention, mobile service solutions dealing with content distribution and home service businesses dealing with content distribution for home AV equipment. We will continue to offer new secure services in the broadening SD world to make our daily lives more convenient and safe."
* According to Yano Research Institute Ltd.
Hamburg-based Panasonic Industrial Europe GmbH employs 300 people and has a turnover of 600 million euros. Managing Director is Tadashi Mochizuki. PIE has a branch in the UK (London) and sales offices in Paris, Barcelona, Milan, Vienna, Munich, Düsseldorf, a telecommunications service office in Copenhagen and a training centre of factory automation in Vienna.
Smart cards are rapidly expanding into many new markets including finance, transportation, distribution, industry and government administrations and have been introduced in a wide variety of applications such as transport ticket payments, access control, electronic money and credit cards. In 2003, some 51 million smart cards were issued in Japan and the number is expected to rise to 340 million by 2010.* Meanwhile, since the introduction of the SD Memory Card in July 2000, 220 makers have announced over 2,600 SD Memory Card-compatible products and approximately 41 million SD Memory Cards were sold in 2003, attaining number one global market share in the memory card industry.
As smart cards become more convenient, the need for greater data capacity and high security has increased. The smartSD Card combines the advanced copyright protection, portability, and easy connectivity of the SD Memory Card with the con-venience of a contactless smart card, allowing the card to send/receive large amounts of data at high speed and with high security, thereby supporting a variety of new applications. The smart card in the smartSD Card uses non-volatile FeRAM (ferroelectric RAM), which enables high-speed data writing, five times faster than conventional EEPROM-based smart cards. The large-capacity flash memory in the smartSD Card can be used as an extra storage area for the smart card module and the stored data is protected by cipher technology. The secured extended memory also transfers data at the rate of about 600 Kbytes per second.
Offering large secure storage, authentication and contactless data communication capabilities, the new type of SD Memory Card can be used for a wider variety of smart-card applications. Mr. Masaki Akiyama, President, Panasonic System Solutions Company, said, "Our hope is to create new businesses deriving from the special features of the smartSD Card. These include corporate solutions dealing with information leakage prevention, mobile service solutions dealing with content distribution and home service businesses dealing with content distribution for home AV equipment. We will continue to offer new secure services in the broadening SD world to make our daily lives more convenient and safe."
* According to Yano Research Institute Ltd.
About Panasonic Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (Panasonic)
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., best known for its Panasonic brand name, is a worldwide leader in the development and manufacture of electronic products for a wide range of consumer, business, and industrial needs. Based in Osaka, Japan, the Company recorded consolidated sales of US$71.92 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2004. Matsushita's shares are listed on the Tokyo, Osaka, Na-goya, New York (NYSE:MC), Euronext Amsterdam and Frankfurt stock exchanges. For more information on the company and its Panasonic brand, visit the Matsushita website at http://www.panasonic.co.jp/global/top.html.Panasonic Industrial Europe GmbH (PIE)
Panasonic Industrial Europe is responsible for the Europe-wide sale of production equipment and parts such as electronic components and appliances, semi-conductors and production systems to customers in the electronics industry and the audio-visual, household appliances and telecommunications, computer and auto-motive electronics markets. PIE is also responsible for the sale of consumer batter-ies through Battery Sales Europe NV in Brussels.Hamburg-based Panasonic Industrial Europe GmbH employs 300 people and has a turnover of 600 million euros. Managing Director is Tadashi Mochizuki. PIE has a branch in the UK (London) and sales offices in Paris, Barcelona, Milan, Vienna, Munich, Düsseldorf, a telecommunications service office in Copenhagen and a training centre of factory automation in Vienna.