[Reader-list] NXP's MIFARE DESFire to Power CRIS' Contactless Smart Cards- 196

[Taha Mehmood]

NxP gets its first major contract to supply contactless smart cards to
Indian Railways.

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http://www.itnewsonline.com/news/NXPs-MIFARE-DESFire-to-Power-CRIS-Contactless-Smart-Cards/14604/8/1

NXP's MIFARE DESFire to Power CRIS' Contactless Smart Cards
IT News Online Staff
2009-08-13

NXP Semiconductors announced that its secure microcontroller-based
chip technology MIFARE DESFire has been selected by the Center for
Railway Information Systems (CRIS), an IT organization under the
Ministry of Railways, to power contactless smart cards for automatic
fare collection using ATVMs (Automatic Ticket Vending Machines) across
various cities in India.

Indian Railways, one of the largest and busiest rail transport
networks in the world, carrying over 18 million passengers every day,
will use NXP's technology solutions to improve the overall passenger
experience and drive operational efficiencies. NXP said the
announcement confirms its strategy to focus on its leadership position
in the Identification business in India. On a global basis, 75% of all
electronic tickets in public transport use NXP MIFARE technology.

CRIS developed an Automatic Ticket Vending Machine (ATVM) as part of
an Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS), for which it has won a Prime
Minister's Award for excellence in public administration from 2006 to
2008.

CRIS had initially in 2007 developed the smart card based contactless
ticketing solutions using NXP's MIFARE 1 KB Classic chip in Mumbai
Suburban Railway and Chennai, wherein around 5 lakh cards were issued
to passengers in the Central/Western Railway at Mumbai and Southern
Railway at Chennai.

These user-friendly ATVMs will be rolled out across five major cities
in India, namely New Delhi, Secunderabad, Kolkata, Bhubaneswar and
Pune. Together with card and inlay-manufacturer Siepmann's Card
Systems, NXP will provide MIFARE DESFire-based ICs for around 6.5 lakh
contactless cards over a period of one year. This project is expected
to go live in September 2009 and will initially be rolled out in two
cities.

The Smart Card ticketing solution developed by CRIS using NXP's MIFARE
DESFire technology is based on the international ISO 14443A standard,
and provides industry-leading levels of security. This solution in its
entirety has been conceptualized, designed and manufactured in India
to meet Indian commuter needs under the guidance and vision of CRIS,
enabled by NXP's technologies and ecosystem partners.

The vision of CRIS and its development of the ATVM have been
instrumental in upgrading the ticketing systems; thereby replacing
traditional paper-based ticketing with Smart Cards. The adoption of
contactless ticketing will greatly reduce queues at manual ticketing
counters, prove economically viable and ultimately drive process
efficiencies. This partnership with NXP and Siepmann's Card Systems
will help CRIS provide a secure, cost-effective and superior offering
to commuters on Indian Railways.

P. Vishwanath Bhas, Managing Director, Siepmann's Card Systems Pvt.
Ltd., said, "We are pleased to partner with NXP who have supported us
in creating a state-of-the-art, secure and scalable solution for
Indian Railways. We have worked closely with NXP to develop a
cost-effective, manageable product that will withstand Indian
conditions and provide innovative solutions to transport systems."

Ashok Chandak, senior director, global sales and marketing for India
for NXP Semiconductors, said, "We see a significant growth in the use
of contactless Smart Card technology in transport systems in India,
and are well positioned to cater to the needs of current transport
infrastructure upgrades, especially road and rail projects. The
project with CRIS reiterates our position as a leading player in the
field of contactless Smart Card ICs used in public transit networks
and access management worldwide."

"NXP's secure technology platforms are ideal for multi-application
smart cards in transport schemes, e-government and identity
applications, and have been used in several projects such as the
multipurpose national identity cards with the Government of India,"
added Chandak.