At the annual Comdex technology show, Mondex, Hitachi and 1steTech are jointly previewing a new chip card application for online and offline consumer shopping which is set to go live in Las Vegas in 2001.
The demonstrations at Comdex 2000, taking place in Las Vegas this week, are focussing on both physical and virtual transactions in a secure environment using Mondex electronic cash. For the duration of the show, visitors to the 1steTech stand will be able to make online purchases from popular retailers including Walmart, Subway and Starbucks and have them delivered to their PC.
Following the Comdex demonstration, 1steTech says it will start a field trial in Las Vegas, commencing in 2001. The smart card applications chosen for the field trial will run on the Multos operating system platform and may also use electronic cash and Hitachi's loyalty program "Multi-Pockets" featuring card-to-card authentication with digital key exchange. The project will include supplying trade merchants, including department, gas and grocery stores, with card readers.
If the field test is successful, 1steTech, a privately held smart card developer and integrator, says it will expand the solution to other selected markets both regionally and nationally.