Smartspace Software Share Discussion Threads

[bonty] 18/3/2007 23:13

Garth
Thanks for that, the link wouldn't open on my other machine, but got it now.
B.

[garth] 18/3/2007 20:46

Ecebs is the only independent Software house to achieve Visa and MasterCard
certification. The company Supplies EMV chip + Card O/S solution.
Within iProved, eCebs carries out the integrated EMV - VocalidÒ solution with key benefits to Banks. Ecebs are supplying low cost EMV '96 approved solutions for iProved.
Ecebs are at the forefront of EMV 2000 developments and can/will supply for
production in 2004 including iProved-based demand.

[garth] 18/3/2007 20:43

Ecebs join European consortium

Ecebs have been invited to participate
in a consortium of telecom, banking
and technology companies headed by
ELVA, the French-American design
centre which is strongly positioned in
the sectors of identification and
authentication.
Code-named "iProved", the project is a
take-up trial supported by the European
Commission which aims at testing and
unveiling the VocaliD system on a
European scale. VocaliD is a new model for
secure on-line transactions based on a
smartcard. It combines innovative
smartcard technology with a traditional
magnetic stripe card. VocaliD emits a
variable acoustic authentication signal for
systematic validation online by an
authentication server. It therefore requires
only a telephone (mobile or otherwise) or a
computer dispensing with the need for any
smartcard reader. This has obvious
potential anywhere in the world - at home,
work, a friend's house, on the street,
offering the same security each time. On a
broader front, its independence from any
card reader infrastructure means it is ideal
for deployment in developing countries.

[bonty] 18/3/2007 18:11

Garth,
That sounds very interesting, but how do you know that ECEBS are involved? I can't find any mention of each other on either ECEBS or Elva's websites.
Vocalid would certainly seem to cut down the possibility of on line fraud, or at least make people feel more secure. (it won't do anything for those who insist on replying to phishing emails).
B.

[garth] 18/3/2007 10:56

Its not about to set the world on fire (although France Telecom are involved) - but just a reminder about another project that SMRT (Ecebs) are providing underlying technology for:

Vocalid® card is a smart card that embeds an acoustic interface.
With this interface, the Vocalid® card can work on any telephone or any computer with a microphone, anywhere in the world - at home, work, a friend's house, on the street offering the same security each time.
The chip, Vic, was developed by Elva, and provides the highest level of security ever offered for a multireader smart card, with extensive possibilities for expanding its functionalities.



Technical characteristics

Vocalid® smart card
Thickness: 0.80 mm
Length: 85.5 mm
Width: 54 mm
Magnetic stripe
7816 Synchronous protocol

Chip: special circuit developed by Elva and manufactured by ATMEL


External Acoustic Module (EAM):

Thickness: 14 mm
Length: 60 mm
Width: 40 mm
Weight : 30 g


The External Acoustic Module (EAM) embeds a switch, a battery and a piezoelectric transducer
The switch: Simply push it to trigger the emission of an authentication sound sequence.
The battery: CR2016 type providing the power required by the system. The battery lasts for 10000 uses, or 2 to 3 years depending on the associated application.
Piezoelectric transducer: thin ceramic membrane supplied by Murata. Driven by the chip, it emits the authentication sound sequence.

The acoustic interface:
The identification data calculated in the chip are transmitted to the external acoustic module. The card is activated when the EAM switch is pushed. The process is designed for use over a computer microphone or telephone handset.
The authentication sequence is transmitted as a loop in FSK format (old modem standard).
In the field of acoustic authentication, the Vocalid® solution offers the best performance (100% recognition within two seconds, under standard communication conditions and card usage).

The other interfaces: compliance with existing standards

ISO contacts
Vocalid® works in a traditional chip reader: an ISO reader can read and process the data contained in the chip.
Magnetic stripe Vocalid® can be used in traditional payment methods because of its magnetic stripe. This transaction method is the one most widely used.
Other types of reader
The standard processes for printing and embossing cards can provide visual personalization for the issuer and the user of the card.

Security

Principles
Whether over the telephone or over the Internet, the security of the Vocalid® authentication system is based on the only principle that works well: transmitting variable authentication data for systematic validation online by an authentication server.

The major selling point of Vocalid® security
- The One Time Password can't be read as it is transmitted by an acoustic way.
- It's quietly impossible to intercept the acoustic sequence either over phone than over an SSL internet session. In any case more difficult than RFID sequence.
Economic realities:
Smart card solutions are already available and provide a high level of security but are costly because, unlike the Vocalid® system, they require dedicated card readers. With Vocalid® , the smart card contains the means to become an international standard for secure online transactions.
Stolen passwords:
The security of Vocalid® is based on a simple principle that is extremely effective in combating online fraud: sending an unpredictable pseudo-random authentication sequence that can only be used once. Traditional solutions that consist of typing or orally dictating a bank card number or access code are too open to fraudulent use. Even if intercepted, a Vocalid® sequence is unusable, whereas in a traditional model, fraudulent use of a bank card number is generally accepted online.
Counterfeit cards:
Creating a counterfeit smart card, or copying a real one, is very difficult although some say it is not impossible. Here again Vocalid® offers a solution. A counterfeit Vocalid® card will be automatically rejected by the authentication server, as it has not been registered (identification number, key, previous cryptograms). And if two identical Vocalid® cards are in circulation (highly improbable scenario of a copied card), the desynchronization of the card and server that results from simultaneous use of the two cards will cause an immediate and definitive rejection by the authentication center.

[garth] 16/3/2007 10:10

Your London Card, Accourt and the ACE II Consortium:

Compare my last post with this. Ecebs are part of the ACE II Consortium....

""Your London" – the vision for a pan-London citizen card, developed by Accourt for London Connects – was successfully launched at London Steps Up, the London Connects and Smart Card Networking Forum conference at Lords Cricket Ground, held on 31st January. The conference brought together over 150
participants from a range of London Boroughs and other UK Local Authorities, as well as a number of Central Government Agencies, to discuss the opportunities and challenges that card technologies and schemes can provide.

The day kicked off with Accourt describing the background to the "Your London" card vision, and highlighting some of the key factors that need to taken into account in the development of a successful scheme. The morning continued with presentations from speakers including John McKernan of OFMDFM/DFP discussing Northern Ireland's youth card pilot "MyCard" (developed by the ACEII consortium, which also includes Accourt).

John Stout, Chief Executive of TranSys and Will Judge, Oyster Director then spoke of Oyster's plans for expansion. Very much the hot topic, Oyster has been regularly in the news, with recent announcements on station coverage extension plans and a new deal with Barclaycard........(continues)"



And that:


;0)

[garth] 16/3/2007 06:51

"Your London Card"

Are SMRT going to be supplying underlying technology for the new pan-London "Your London Card" local government card?

They have done similar work in Northern Ireland, they partner Accourt on Local Government Smartcards, and are already providing technology to ITSO/Oyster interoperability and supplying underlying technology to Scottish and English Local Government smartcard schemes...... Accourt are advising on the project... ;0)



.....................
London Connects the London-wide agency supporting local, regional and central government in the delivery of the e-government agenda has been working to create a vision for a new pan-London citizen card scheme. Consultancy Accourt is assisting.

The proposed "Your London" card scheme aims to provide a single card for all citizens that will support many aspects of day to day life - travelling, learning, working or recreation throughout London.

The planned card could allow access to local authority services including leisure centres, libraries, educational facilities and transport. Loyalty and discount reward facilities may also be added, in particular in conjunction with smaller retailers in local communities.

The benefits are convenience and improved access to services. Cardholders will be able to choose the services that they want to use and the card may also include a top-up facility for low-value payments such as borrowing DVDs from the libraries and using the facilities at leisure centres. The card will be available not only to local residents but to commuters, tourists and other visitors to London who will also benefit from improved services.

It is planned to start the rollout of the "Your London" card in 2008 following the trials of a number of small scale schemes in some London Boroughs.

Greg Everett, Project Manager at London Connects states "A good vision is crucial to engaging the capital's key players in the Your London Card. The work with Accourt has helped make sure we're getting the right message across".


...........................

Ecebs are partnering Accourt in Local Government Smartcards:

June 2006 "Ecebs and Accourt - An Ideal Partnership"
Ecebs and Accourt are increasing their co-operative ventures as their key skill and knowledge areas show a natural synergy.....

Alan Laird of Accourt added "Ecebs are a natural partner for Accourt when we need to address the issues of dynamic multi-application citizen cards for a client. They also have vast in-depth technical understanding of major smartcard based initiatives, ITSO being a prime example."....

Ecebs and Accourt look forward to many years of fruitful co-operation bringing valuable and comprehensive services to their clients.

[garth] 15/3/2007 05:31

Mastertibbs,

FWIW, EDS, Stagecoach, First Group, National Express are all collaborating on a JV to provide equipment and services to Yorcard (an early ITSO scheme) in 2003-2010:

"Prepayment Cards Limited Preferred Proponent for Yorkshire
Please find attached an announcement from our associated company, Prepayment Cards Limited (PCL), which has been selected as the preferred proponent for a new transit fare collection project in Yorkshire. The project is expected to generate approximately $60 million in revenue comprising up front supply and a seven-year operating contract.

The project is an important win for the ERG Group in the UK as it grows our portfolio of long- term operating contracts. With the addition of the Yorcard project we expect to build our total UK card base to more than 2 million.

The addition of the Yorcard project will assist the Group in meeting its strategic plan in the UK. ERG and PCL have invested significant sums in development of the UK's ITSO standards that are integral to the government's strategy to rollout integrated smart cards across the country.

ERG is currently finalising an agreement that will see its shareholding in PCL move from 47% to 55% before the finalisation of the Yorcard contracts. The remaining 45% is held by Stagecoach Holdings PLC, First Group PLC and National Express Group PLC – the three largest transit operators in the UK. Accordingly, it is anticipated ERG will account for PCL on a consolidated basis by the end of the calendar year.

The strength of the ERG technology was a deciding factor in Yorcard's selection of PCL, as it has been in all other recent contract awards."


EDS are also supplying the ITSO enabled equipment for Shetland in the first stage of the Scottish roll-out:


G.

[spud] 14/3/2007 23:03

Nice buying today despite Market slippage and sentiment - Normally a good litmus test.

spud

[mistertibbs] 14/3/2007 22:23

I wonder if Mastercard was one of the global players they talked about. Could be a good one, a very good one. HBOS recently decided to change from visa to mastercard recently, well the bank of scotland division certainly has.

To think both First Bus and Stagecoach are both Scottish based, it would be nice to use the development of a fellow Scots Co. The technology on its own should prove good enough.

[blueliner] 14/3/2007 19:50

Although sold some recently (needed some cash I think)
my stake has increased some 50% in the last 3 months,
also happy to hold
thanks garth for keeping the beacon lit.

[garth] 14/3/2007 05:06

Pleasure guys.

The picture has improved quite markedly over the last few weeks. SMRT stand to gain significantly from the following, most of which is new information:

1. The AGM statement (or results - I forget which) reported that the Transportation market will be larger than previously believed. The potential size of the concessionary bus travel contract is likely to be around £3m (assuming my calcs on the size of the national bus fleet are anywhere close). We now know for sure that there is no recurring royalty element - but we also know that all those ISAMs have a limited lifetime.

2. The DfT continue to stipulate ITSO on its rail franchise tenders for introduction between 2009-Jan 2010.

3. Compatibility with Oyster has been proven and the DfT has commited to:
"deliver ITSO compatibility with the Oyster network by January 2009."

4. Multefile is being added to all Hitachi's MULTOS cards and will be available in the next couple of months.

5. SMRT are in advanced stages of talks with a global EMV provider re. adding multefile to its cards. (Mastercard?)

6. The 'below forecasts' statement from the AGM proved to be a reduction of only 0.04p eps according to the broker who has pencilled in 0.20p in 2007, 0.74p in 2008 and 1.48p in 2009.

Happy to hold and add the dips as cash allows.

DYOR.

G.

[bonty] 13/3/2007 23:19

Yes, excellent ferreting work Garth, keep it up!

[mistertibbs] 13/3/2007 22:59

Garth.....I'm dizzy trying to keep up with your links. Must say though, it's much appreciated.

[garth] 13/3/2007 06:14

January 2007 press release: Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council rolling out ITSO for transportation on existing multi-application Citizen card over a 4 months period (Jan-April)

[garth] 13/3/2007 06:03

Has cash had its chips?
Fiona MacRae, Daily Mail
12 March 2007

Until now, royalty and paupers have been the only ones not to carry cash. But within five years, it could apply to all of us......

'Wave and pay' cards, under trial by Visa and Barclaycard, are being introduced in the hope of persuading these customers that it is quicker and easier to pay with plastic.

Mastercard is also working on its own version of the technology. The cards work by being passed over a scanner at a shop check-out.......



MULTOS for banking flyer:

[garth] 12/3/2007 20:17

Interesting 4pm tick up with no reported trades. One of my trades through BSB last week still not reported.... Can't see SMRT traded on Plus Market either.

G.

[garth] 12/3/2007 15:26

EJ,

Can buy small numbers for 4.38p and sell large quantities at 3.9p

Offer marginally lower than earlier and bid up 0.1p

G.

[garth] 12/3/2007 14:02

The following are some links on the DfT's Concessionary Bus Travel Bill (CBTB). Under the Bill, by April 1st 2008, all Local Government Authorities will have to be issuing concessionary bus passes. There looks to be little doubt that these will be Smartcards - and that ITSO will be the standard used.

As discussed further up the thread, potential spend on ISAMs (and therefore revenue for SMRT) should top £3 million (estimating the size of the national bus fleet based on Stagecoach's fleet size and market share).....

CBT Bulletin (8th March 2007)

listofdocuments/pdfstakebulletno4?version=1

CBT Bulletin (Feb '07)
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/buses
/concessionary/concessionarybustravelbill/listofdocuments/pdfstakebulletno3

The Bill:
www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/rp2007/rp07-019.pdf

p14-15

"Lord Davies wrote to Lord Bradshaw on 18 January setting out in more detail what steps the Government is taking towards the provision of a nationwide smartcard system:
Such a scheme would of course require a national standard on smartcard
technology in order to ensure inter-operability of passes. This standard exists and is known as the ITSO standard: the detailed technical specifications were
published in 2004 under Crown copyright.27 The Department has already been
working with local authorities in various parts of the country to develop projects using ITSO. We are supporting the migration of three 'legacy' schemes,
introduced before the development of ITSO, so that they comply with the ITSO
standard. Cheshire, Nottinghamshire and Southampton's migration schemes are
expected to be completed in the next 12 months.

We are also working with other local authorities developing ITSO pilot schemes in their areas. The first part of the NoWcard ITSO schemes in Cumbria and
Lancashire, which we have supported through Rural Bus Challenge funding, went
live in September 2006. One million journeys using smartcards had been
completed by early December 2006. The Yorcard pilot in South Yorkshire will
include the main bus operators in the area along with train services between
Doncaster and Sheffield. A Departmental research programme will address the
issues surrounding innovative ticketing products and citizens cards. The pilot is expected to run until December 2008.

In London, the December has also been working with TfL and ATOC to agree the
implementation of ITSO in the capital. This was supported by a Departmental
research programme which included a successful trial of ITSO operating on anumber of buses in west London. Through further work, the Department will
deliver ITSO compatibility with the Oyster network by January 2009.

Both the main opposition parties returned to the theme at Report stage and Third
Reading, with emphasis on placing on the face of the Bill a requirement that the concessionary pass be ITSO compliant.

In both cases, Lord Davies stated that this was unnecessary as the Secretary of State already has the required powers:
Under current provisions, the Secretary of State can ensure that permits issued
by local authorities both outside and within London are in a form which he
stipulates. This can cover a unified appearance and ITSO compliance. This
power to unify is undermined if an option is offered for local authorities instead simply to offer ITSO-compliant cards of whatever appearance, and regardless of any regulations issued by the Secretary of State."


CBT webpages:

[garth] 12/3/2007 13:11

Ticked up twice so far today.

I can get a quote online to sell 100K at 3.8p (the price I added some at last week) but I they won't even quote to buy 8K. They will give 5K at 4.5p online......

Perhaps those broker forecasts and the impact of the Hitachi deal are sinking in?

G.

[garth] 12/3/2007 13:10

East Coast Intercity Franchise stipulating ITSO compatible smartcard ticketing by January 2010:

Thursday 8 March 2007 09:40
Department for Transport (North East)

Bidders for Inter City East Coast rail franchise invited to tender


An Invitation to Tender for bidders for the InterCity East Coast rail franchise has been issued today by the Department for Transport.

The ITT sets out the minimum level of services the new operator will be asked to deliver when the new franchise begins later this year. Bidders are able to operate additional services over and above the services outlined.

Bidders are asked to ensure current service levels are maintained together with additional Leeds half hourly services to commence in May 2007.

The specification will require bidders to:
- Plan for current and anticipated passenger growth and ensure that performance continues to improve.
- seek opportunities to deliver faster journey times on longer distance journeys.
- Set out how security on trains and stations can be improved and
- Say how they will incorporate smart card ticketing by January 2010.
......

8. Smartcard ticketing. The Franchise will need to provide an ITSO (Integrated Ticketing Smartcard Organisation) compliant ticketing system by 2010. This will enable interoperability between different ticketing schemes nationally.


......

[garth] 12/3/2007 09:58

Enabling a future in which electronic purse, travel smartcards, Oyster etc can be topped up from home?

PDF(January 2007) details how Accrington have developed an ISAS to allow purchase of tickets or topping up of smartcards over a network or the internet by 'sharing' an ISAM.

This should provide additional revenue to SMRT from ITSO:
"When the Department for Transport announce their decision on how they are likely to deliver and administrate the National Concessionary Fares Scheme, it is likely that Smartcards will be the preferred option (in line with Scotland and Wales) and that ITSO will be the specification. This will deliver millions of smartcards into the hands of concessionaires and mean that infrastructures will need to be put in place to support these schemes."


Clear requirement for a remote solution for sales and delivery of tickets

As we have identified it is not practical to have SAMs at every point of service. The answer is to enable networked machines to access and share an ISAM in an array. Accrington Technologies Limited was formed to make this idea a reality....

Conclusions
We have seen how the ISAS can be deployed to extend the reach and footprint of the ITSO world to offer a far more flexible, deployable, supportable and affordable means of transaction. The SAM Array system is also an appropriate sales and delivery mechanism beyond the ITSO world.
The ISAS creates new business models. It provides a whole new capability for selling and delivering e-products securely. It gives the facility for organisations to add their own value to the system and use ISAS as the secure 'pipe'.

When the Department for Transport announce their decision on how they are likely to deliver and administrate the National Concessionary Fares Scheme, it is likely that Smartcards will be the preferred option (in line with Scotland and Wales) and that ITSO will be the specification. This will deliver millions of smartcards into the hands of concessionaires and mean that infrastructures will need to be put in place to support these schemes. ISAS provides a methodology to leverage this 'back office' infrastructure, as well as distributed terminals already deployed.

The concessionary fares situation, as well as the rail franchises' smart ticketing requirements, will drive the convergence/ integration of TfL's Oyster and ITSO. Add to that the renewed clamour for cashless payment solutions, the multi-application smartcard's time should finally arrive. Oyster provides ample evidence of the possibilities of a well-run smart card deployment. It has proved very successful in branding and customer acceptance, and has quickly achieved a high penetration level. Oyster is now about to enter the multi-application world with the recent announcement regarding Visa
and Oyster co-existing on the same card.

ISAS is an innovative, advanced engineering solution that creates opportunities through new approaches. ATL recognises the need for flexibility in business models approaching the market. All models would be considered, from a straight transaction volume-based 'price list' method to a shared risk/reward type model, which may address cost of entry and business case equations.

[garth] 12/3/2007 06:48

Spaceport now using smartcard ticketing from Accrington Technologies (Ecebs/Merseytravel JV)





G.

[garth] 11/3/2007 05:50

Just to reiterate:

1. SMRT have just won a contract to have their core Multefile middleware placed on all smartcard chips manufactured for Hitachi with the MULTOS open standard ooperating system on them. Customers will have the option of 'activating the software'. David Braddock called this "transformational", the house broker stated in last week's note: "This represents a monumental leap forward for the Company." Revenues are expected this year.

2. Hitachi and Mastercard are partners in MULTOS.

3. The broker note also stated: "The Company is currently engaged in ongoing discussions with a major global payment organisations interested in adding Multefile™ to its range of smartcards."

Reckon we'll see Mastercard add Multefile..... (They are also testing Paypass at RBS who incidently partner with SMRT on ITSO. ITSO/Paypass/Mastercards by 2010?)

DYOR.

Old news extract:

"New investment to fuel growth into new authentication markets

29 November 2005 - MasterCard International, Keycorp, Hitachi and Oak Hill Venture Partners (OHVP) today announced that they have completed a transaction to form a new company to expand MULTOS, one of the world's highest-security, open standard smart card platforms.

Under the agreement, the new holding company will acquire from MasterCard the intellectual property underlying MULTOS and the Global MULTOS Key Management Authority operation. The new entity will also assume management of London-based MAOSCO Ltd, the secretariat of the MULTOS Consortium which together with its 16 member companies will continue to develop MULTOS as an open standard smart card platform."