"The GPO designs and manufactures security and intelligence documents
for the Federal government and takes the responsibility very
seriously. The new technology that will eventually be incorporated
into electronic U.S. passports will enhance the security of millions
of Americans travelling around the world," said Bruce James, Public
Printer of the United States and CEO of the GPO. The new technology
makes available additional information about the passport holder, all
embedded on a microchip.
The three-phase project involves GPO, Department of State Bureau of
Consular Affairs and The National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST). GPO will manufacture test passports using chip
solutions provided by the four companies. NIST will then test the
electronic passports for their ability to meet durability, security,
and electronic requirements.
Contracts have been signed with the four candidate companies and
substantial fees have been paid. "We are looking at different types
of antennas and different substrates," he said. "The chip is only
part of it. We are looking at chip durability and chip reliability,
and the ability to integrate the products into passport covers."
The four companies and the value of the contracts awarded for testing
them in the first phase of the project are:
Once test results are completed and a final vendor is selected, the
Department of State plans to begin issuing electronic passports to
U.S. Government employees. The first electronic passports are
expected to be issued to the general public in the second quarter of
2005 with full deployment at all Department of State passport
agencies in late 2005.
State eventually may choose one or two suppliers for the job, Moss said.
The department now produces about 7 million passports annually. When
State rolls out its biometric passport capability, it plans to charge
applicants a $10 fee to pay for the biometric feature.
The contractor or contractors that provide the covers, which the
Government Printing Office will combine
with the passports' inside pages, would be likely to get a portion
of the resulting revenues, amounting to $35 million or more annually.
SuperCom, (SPCBF.OB) one of the candidates for the contract, said in
a statement that State's biometric passport project is the largest
and most advanced program in the world. "The scope of the project,
based on the request for proposals is estimated at 50 million
passports over five years," SuperCom said.
SuperCom's solution provides a smart inlay, which can be included in
the front or back cover, in the middle page or adjoining the
personalization page. SuperCom has installed a significant number of
passport personalization systems around the world. Tailored to meet
the customer's specific requirements, the SuperCom system will
capture the fingerprints of each visa applicant and store the images
on a chip integrated in each visa, enabling automatic and positive
identification of the person each time the visa is used. The system
features an advanced and decentralized design that makes it fast and
cost-effective to install while increasing its flexibility.
SuperCom, founded in 1988, started trading in Europe on the Euronext
Brussels Stock Exchange in 1999, and on Nasdaq Over-The-Counter
Bulletin Board in 2004.
Israel has also decided to make the move to biometric passports and
shortly will issue a tender for the project. Britain is also moving
ahead and plans to be biometric by 2006.
The United States Government Printing Office has awarded contracts to
four companies to provide computer chips for testing a new electronic
U.S. passport.
Axalto, Inc. 2 awards of $107,770 each
BearingPoint/SuperCom, Inc. $82,823
Infineon Technologies, North America $108,317
SuperCom, Inc. $73,787