IDEMIA enters patent license agreement for on-card enrollment solutions with IDEX in order to expand its leadership in the field of biometric cards

IDEMIA, the global leader in Augmented Identity announces that IDEMIA and IDEX Biometrics ASA, the leading provider of advanced fingerprint identification and authentication solutions have entered a worldwide license agreement for use of IDEX’s biometric enrollment intellectual property. Under the terms of the agreement, IDEX has granted IDEMIA a license to use some IDEX patents in order to develop, manufacture and sell on-card enrollment devices while benefiting from IDEMIA’s biometric card software expertise.

“On-card Enrollment” refers to enabling a user to enroll onto a brand new biometric smart card in their own home. The cardholder may receive a new biometric smart card and a lightweight receptacle containing a power source through the mail. The user then inserts the card into the enrollment receptacle and simply touches the fingerprint sensor area on the card several times. Throughout the enrollment process, the card is not connected to any other device or network. With no need to visit a bank, no need to involve another device, no apps, no wireless pairing and no compatibility problems for the user to worry about, on-card enrollment is a cost-effective, practical solution that is championing over alternative connected enrollment methods.

IDEMIA’s intelligent services provide financial institutions and individuals with a range of solutions to meet the ever-increasing need for security and payment flow. It is by incorporating biometric technology into payment methods that IDEMIA is able to improve the customer experience. IDEMIA is investing into biometric cards as the obvious answer to the growing consumer needs for ever more security and convience while paying with their cards. IDEMIA is the first company to have obtained an international scheme certificate for a biometric card and is providing an industry-leading product roadmap, combining own and licensed technology for enrollment.

Earlier this year, IDEX was granted foundational patents for devices and methods relating to on-card enrollment on biometric smart cards by the United States Patent and Trademark Office and IP Australia. IDEX also has additional patent applications for its enrollment inventions pending in other major territories. These patents form part of a broad portfolio of patents and applications on fingerprint sensor and biometric algorithm technology, which IDEX intends to use to enable the expansion of the biometric smart card and payment card markets.

Todays’ announcement deepens a long-standing collaboration between IDEMIA and IDEX, in order to develop biometric smart cards that can be supported by IDEX’s on-card fingerprint enrollment patents, another step towards democratizing biometric security.

IDEX Biometrics started filing its first patent applications for on-card enrollment concepts in 2017. Since then, this disruptive invention has grown in popularity throughout the payment industry and represents a key enabler for biometric smart card adoption. We’re delighted to be licensing this unique and innovative solution to IDEMIA as we continue to work closely together to enable mass adoption of biometric smart cards.
Dave Orme, SVP of Sales and Marketing at IDEX

Our expertise and technology at IDEMIA make possible to offer secure payment methods and to respond to customers’ growing demand for biometric authentication. Using biometrics to secure point of sale transactions reduces friction in the payment experience as well as providing the best security to carry out transactions with complete trust.
Amanda Gourbault, Executive VP of the Financial Institutions Business Unit at IDEMIA