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Gemplus Announces New Enhanced Secure Smart Card Interface Accessory for PalmTM Handhelds



Cartes 2001, Paris, October 22, 2001 – Gemplus (NASDAQ:GEMP), the worldˇ¦s leading provider of smart card-enabled solutions, today announced it will showcase a special smart card interface accessory, based on GemCore technology, for Palm™ handheld computers, at Cartes on October 23rd 2001.

The Palm OS™ platform leads the worldwide handheld OS market with more than 17.5 million Palm OS based devices sold, including more than 14 million Palm branded handhelds shipped since the introduction of the company's first handheld computer in 1996. GemCore based smart card interface has been designed to effectively address one of the handheld market's key concerns: data security. It brings an additional level of security through enhanced data encryption and Gemplus have further developed its data beaming security within the smart card infrastructure. Gemplus estimates that at least 10% of handheld users are concerned about protecting their data.

In addition to the enhanced security features, smart card also opens up new applications for Palm handheld users. These include logical and physical access control, ticketing functions and SIM card management. EMV-certified accessory also enables e-wallet applications for mobile commerce.

In order for smart cards to live up to their promising potential, smart card readers must be easy for consumers to access and use. In a momentous step for the smart card industry, the challenge of building the infrastructure necessary for global smart card adoption is being addressed through collaboration between Gemplus and Palm, Inc.

"We have already made significant in roads into the PC and set-top box market. Working with the leader in the handheld industry illustrates our strategic move to start targeting mobile devices, as we now have a smart card infrastructur

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