New module for the 9000 Series card issuance systems provides critical capabilities for emerging financial, transit and government card programs

Orlando, Fla. — May 13, 2003 — Datacard Group today announced at the CardTech/SecurTech 2003 Conference and Exhibition it will make available a contactless smart card personalization module for the Datacard® 9000, 7000 and 500 Series card issuance systems in the third quarter of 2003. The new module, which can be easily integrated with existing systems, allows card issuers to personalize the most common contactless smart cards, including ISO type A and B (14443) cards, MIFARE® cards and Sony® FeliCa™ cards.

“As financial and government card issuers recognize the convenience that contactless cards offer to consumers, we are seeing growth in contactless smart card applications beyond traditional transit programs.” said Kent Shields, senior vice president and general manager of Datacard’s hardware division. “We expect our new contactless module will become the solution of choice for a number of emerging financial, government and transit card programs around the world.”

Shields pointed to new contactless products from American Express, MasterCard International and Visa International as prime examples of strong demand for a standardized contactless smart card personalization solution. “Our module could bring speed and simplicity to the issuance of a full range of contactless products, including MasterCard PayPassÔ from MasterCard International, ExpressPay from American Express and contactless payment solutions from Visa,” Shields said.

The new contactless smart card module allows 9000, 7000 and 500 Series system users to personalize both contact and contactless smart cards as part of the same production run. Other inline capabilities include graphics printing, embossing, magnetic stripe encoding, laser engraving, label affixing and card delivery.

“We’ve offered contactless smart card personalization in a number of our other card issuance systems for several years,” Shields said. “This module, however, represents a tremendous breakthrough in terms of functionality and production flexibility.”

Shields said the new contactless smart card module reflects Datacard’s commitment to continuous development for its 9000, 7000 and 500 Series systems. “When we introduced these systems, we promised our customers that we would protect their investment and continue to grow the capabilities of these systems,” Shields said. “This new module is just one in a long list of recent enhancements that we’ve brought to market.”

Datacard Group provides software, systems and professional services needed to build profitable card programs. The company’s portfolio includes a complete line of smart card solutions, secure digital identity systems and card personalization systems. Datacard Group, which is privately held and based in Minnetonka, Minn., serves customers in more than 120 countries.