ePassport business round-upGemalto sales dip, but ePassport unit is stronger than ever
Falling prices in SIM cards depress overall revenue, but ePassport rollouts in Poland and France boost ID & Security unit by 19 percent; company is well on its way to total European market dominance
There is good news and bad news in France-based Gemalto’s third quarter earnings reports. The bad news first: Company revenue fell by 10 percent to €390 million due to a 32 percent drop in prices for SIM cards and a drop-off in its banking card unit also due to depressed prices. The good news, however, is good news for the homeland security market as a whole. Geamlto’s ID & Security unit, the company’s smallest but perhaps its most innovative and aggresive, saw a 19 percent increase in sales to €42 million — the direct result of the company’s efforts to corner the market in electronic passports. Gemalto recently began delivery for rollout in France and Poland, and has previously signed similar deals with the Czech Republic, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Slovenia, Sweden, Singapore, Denmark, the United States, and Holland.
The company was formed in June 2006 by the combination of Axalto and Gemplus International S.A.
-read more in this Card Technology report
