0708
Hitachi is teaming up with JCB to test biometric technology that uses cardholders' finger veins to authenticate them at the point of sale. Gerard F. Corbett, Hitachi America’s Vice President, Branding and Corporate Communications Group, tells ePaynews that the two firms are initially planning an internal beta pilot.
According to a Nikkei article reported by Dow Jones Newswires, Hitachi's technology will let consumers pay for purchases via a finger reader instead of using credit cards at a card reader and signing their names. The data would then be matched with vein patterns that are held by credit card issuers. The verification process is expected to take just a few seconds, Hitachi says.
Hitachi and Japanese credit card issuer JCB plan to start a three-month trial in Japan this September. The Nikkei article says that Hitachi wants to start marketing its point-of-sale biometric authentication technology by March 2007, the end of its current financial year.
The technology will likely be used in locations such as theme parks, commercial facilities, video game arcades and gyms, The Nikkei says. The finger reader is expected to be priced at around 30,000 Yen (US$249).
Related Links
www.jcbinternational.com/
www.hitachi.com/
