June 2013
– New cards can provide unrivalled ITSO product storage capability
Rambus Ecebs have been awarded ITSO certification for two members of its card family “Pearl” and “Diamond”.
Pearl, a contactless only smart card can hold at least twice as many ITSO products as the contactless platform (DESFire) and is therefore capable of holding tickets with a higher need for info storage such as those found on rail where customers may make multi-leg journeys or hold seat reservation information. The silicon platform for the Pearl card is provided by Infineon technologies. It is a highly secure device used widely in the banking industry, which makes the Pearl card a secure choice for online transactions such as those used in ITSO part 11 implementations like Rambus Ecebs Paragon RTD solution. Security is especially relevant for high value transactions.
The Diamond card, which has also received its ITSO certificate, provides a ‘one size fits all’ card offering. This card offers all of the features provided by the Pearl card including the Infineon platform but as a dual interface device also comes with an EMV payment application meaning it can be used in schemes which are both ITSO and EMV based. The Diamond card is being used by a number of Rambus Ecebs customers including Nevis Technologies for the Glasgow Subway, which is due to go live during 2013. Both cards come with MIFARE legacy support and also have significant card memory left over to offer even more ITSO application space if required in addition to a wide range of additional applications such as Lasseo, ID, loyalty etc.
Both cards can be remotely updated, meaning changes required after the cards have been issued can be made, maximising the potential of the card post issuance.
Russell McCullagh, Rambus Ecebs Managing Director added, “with Pearl we have brought a card to market that will avoid a customer’s card running out of space to store their products. As more and more smart card transport schemes emerge and more commercial products are available, this will provide consumers with a better customer experience. With Diamond we have also added EMV payment meaning the card can be used on a wider basis, creating a wider appeal and experience for the travelling public.”