Axalto is Consolidating Leadership Position in the Public Sector Market; Key Worldwide References Demonstrate Unrivalled Security Expertise, Network of Local Partners and Ability to Deliver Ready-to-Integrate Product.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 18, 2003

Axalto, formerly known as Schlumberger Smart Cards and Terminals, remains the reference smart card supplier in the government market, benefiting from its historical smart card-based security expertise, its international network and ready-to-integrate high end products. Key implementations and on-going projects include the ID program in Belgium (BelPIC), the French SESAM Vitale health card, the digital tachograph to be implemented Europe wide, and the electronic passport, which will be demonstrated at the Axalto booth 4K003 at the Cartes conference in Paris this week.

Due to increasing international security concerns, governments are looking to offer fast and reliable on-line services to citizens in a trusted environment, and to reduce their administration operational costs. As the smart card is able to increase citizen security while ensuring that privacy is not compromised, governments are showing strong interest in smart card technology to support their requirements, and Axalto is currently involved in most of the major projects.

"The recent decision from the United States to issue electronic passports from October, 2004 is a strong signal of where the public sector market is heading in terms of technology choices. Besides the US, there are many countries willing to explore the smart national ID approach from Belgium to Malaysia and India. Axalto is confident that these major initiatives are part of a general trend that will reinforce the smart card as the ideal device for modern interactions between citizens and governments," said Olivier Piou, chief executive officer of Axalto.

Some of the key public sector projects in which Axalto is engaged include:

-- The Belgian Personal Identity Card (BelPIC) is the first large scale deployment of electronic ID cards in Europe. As the first country in the European Union to supply its entire population with a citizen card, Belgium is being closely watched as a pioneer of public sector implementations. The smart card includes the usual identity features (name, photo, date of birth) and enables holders to securely authenticate themselves when accessing e-government applications (tax return, e-voting, obtaining civil records, declaration of household employees, etc.), their social security file, or possible future private applications, such as payment and reservation for cultural events. Belgium citizens will also be able to put their own electronic signature to digital documents such as declarations or application forms, which will have the same value as the documents that are currently signed by hand. More than 10 million cards are to be produced and distributed to Belgium citizens over the next three years. Axalto, which provided the smart card technology and security expertise, has worked with system integrator Zetes on this program.

-- The SESAM Vitale health card is the most important existing public sector microprocessor-based project in the world in terms of volume, representing almost 60 million cards. Launched in 1998 in France, the SESAM Vitale health smart card system enables all stakeholders in the healthcare equation to conduct secure and authorized electronic transactions, and allows the French Healthcare authority to significantly cut administrative costs. Axalto designed the patient and health professional cards operating systems, obtained trusted third party ITSEC security certificates, and manufactures the majority of the cards.

-- The Common Access Card program for The American Department of Defense (DoD) marks a major step in the adoption of smart card technology in the US. The contract was awarded to EDS who selected Axalto for the delivery of more than four million smart cards to over 1,000 DoD locations worldwide. The Axalto smart cards enable the personnel of the DoD across the globe to perform secure logical/physical access and e-transactions. The CAC program shows the leadership role DoD took in leveraging the benefits of smart card within the public sector. It still represents the biggest contract ever won in smart cards for secure logical access, confirming the leadership of Axalto in secure ID solution for governments and enterprises. On the technical side, Axalto was the world's first ever to supply DoD with FIPS 140-1 level 2 certified Java(TM) cards for PKI applications.

-- In India, drivers' license and vehicle registration are now based and certified on a smart card by Axalto. Axalto is the first company to be SCOSTA (Smart Card Operating System for Transport Application) certified by the Indian Ministry of Road Transport and the Ministry of Communication and IT. Aiming for up to 150 million cards, this project highlights many essential aspects of the smart card application for national programs, simultaneously providing human and machine readable identity through a cost-effective and convenient portable device that does not mandate heavy communication infrastructure, with a technology protecting citizens' rights and privacy, ready for future evolutions.

-- The digital tachograph has been developed as part of a European road safety project. In compliance with European Commission guidelines, all truck drivers in the 25 member states (including the 10 new entrants) are to be equipped with smart card-based tachographs by August 7, 2004. Leveraging smart card technology, the tachograph allows totally reliable recording and output of driving time and speed, and represents the most advanced technological solution for combating road safety violations, paving the way for a future European drivers license. Axalto provides smart card technology based on an open system including common criteria security certification directly, and through partners, in particular to the French Department of Road Transportation, and the Netherlands and Luxembourg Ministry of Transport.

Come and see the demos of electronic passport, BelPIC and digital tachograph at the Axalto booth 4K003 at Cartes.

About Axalto

Axalto, formerly known as Schlumberger Smart Cards & Terminals, is the world's leading provider of microprocessor cards (Gartner 2003, Frost & Sullivan 2003) -- the key to digital networks -- and a major supplier of point-of-sale terminals. Its 4500 employees serve customers in more than 100 countries, with worldwide sales exceeding 2.8 billion smart cards to date. The company has more than 20 years' experience in smart card innovation and leads its industry in security technology and open systems.

Axalto continuously creates new generations of products for use in a variety of applications in the telecommunications, finance, retail, transport, entertainment, healthcare, personal identification, information technology and public sector markets. Smart card solutions provide convenience, security and privacy to public and private services operators, their customers and end users. For more information, visit us at www.axalto.com