Setec receives a major follow-up order from Wataniya Telecom, Kuwait

Vantaa, 15 June 2005, Setec, Northern Europe’s leading developer and manufacturer of visual and electronic card products, and a Gemplus company, announced today that it will supply an additional 300,000 PKI SIM cards to Wataniya Telecom, Kuwait. This is the largest order for PKI-based (Public Key Infrastructure) SIM cards worldwide and follows a previous order for 800,000 64k PKI SIMs, to be used for secure authentication.

Setec will begin deliveries to Kuwait in June with a view to completion in September. Earlier this year, Setec supplied the first 800,000 SIMs faster than was originally agreed with the customer. The new SIMs were well received by the market and Wataniya Telecom has therefore decided to place a new order to meet increasing demands.

The PKI-based SIM cards enable the mobile phone to be used securely for an increasing range of applications, for example for m-commerce, to digitally sign documents and to access Internet-based services. These services will now be rolled-out extensively in Kuwait.

“The co-operation with Wataniya Telecom is an excellent example of Setec’s strategy to develop products that add value to our customers. We are pleased to note that this card, developed by Setec, is one of the key boosters for Wataniya Telecom’s business in Kuwait,” states Mr Tapio Vailahti, Senior Vice President in Setec’s Telecom & Media business unit.

“We have succeeded in strengthening our position in the Kuwait telecom market. The combination of Setec’s flexible and fast operations with the versatile and interesting services that we can provide to our customers thanks to the PKI SIM cards, have a major role in our success,” says Mr Harri Koponen, CEO of Wataniya Telecom. “We want to offer our customers additional services that bring real value,” emphasizes Mr Koponen.

Wataniya Telecom launched the PKI SIM cards in March and the market interest has been high ever since. Wataniya Telecom will upgrade all its customers’ SIM cards with the new and versatile PKI SIM cards, developed and manufactured by Setec.

For further information, please contact:
Mr Tapio Vailahti,
Senior Vice President, Telecom & Media, Setec,
tel. +358 9 8941 4283,
mobile +358 40 8211 093

Mr Harri Koponen, CEO,
Wataniya Telecom,
tel. +965 630 0000

Mr Timo Everi,
Director, Marketing, Sales & PR, Wataniya Telecom,
tel. +965 243 4160,
mobile +965 6363 677

About Setec
Setec develops, manufactures and delivers products that require extreme security, such as biometric and visual passports, electronic and visual ID cards, EMV cards and SIM cards for various countries. What is common in all these smart card products is their microchip, which improves the security of authentication, whether dealing with people face-to-face or online. Setec’s major customers are public authorities, banks, and telecom operators. The company has operations in Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Poland and Thailand. At the end of 2004, the Group’s net sales totalled EUR 58.5 million and it employed 353 people. Setec is a Gemplus company.

www.setec.com

About Wataniya Telecom
Launched in December 1999, Wataniya Telecom has been a driving force in increasing the mobile communications market penetration in Kuwait to over 80 percent of the population.
With operations in Kuwait, Maldives, Iraq, Tunisia and Algeria, Wataniya Telecom is actively expanding its presence within the MENA (Middle East North Africa) region. Serving over 3,5 million customers in its operations, Wataniya Telecom has built its success on a customer focused strategy based on the philosophy that everything the company does must bring it closer to its customers. The Company provides a wide range of leading edge wireless voice and data services delivered with high quality and designed to meet customer requirements.

©2005 Gemplus. All rights reserved. Gemplus, the Gemplus logo, are trademarks and service marks of Gemplus S.A. and are registered in certain countries. All other trademarks and service marks, whether registered or not in specific countries, are the property of their respective owners.

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