GlobalPlatform Extends Compliance Program to Focus on Market Specific Configurations

25 November 2009 – The international specification body for smart card infrastructure, GlobalPlatform, will be releasing test suites to enable its members to develop the appropriate tools to test a card manufacturer's compliance to its Card Specification v2.2 market configurations.  Initial activity will focus on the UICC Configuration for the mobile services sector, and the Mapping Guidelines v2.1.1 Configuration which applies to financial and government smart card deployments.

The test suites created by GlobalPlatform for its market configurations will be available exclusively to GlobalPlatform members, who in turn will develop test tools for use by the wider industry.  Barnes International, Collis, France Telecom, Galitt and Trusted Labs have confirmed their commitment to integrating these test suites into their test tools. GlobalPlatform's card manufacturer members have also confirmed participation in the program.

Gil Bernabeu, GlobalPlatform's Technical Director and Technical Advisor for the Standardization and Technology Department at Gemalto, comments: "GlobalPlatform is not only devoted to actively pursuing the continual evolution of its technical specifications, but also ensuring interoperability within the market.  The extension of the compliance program demonstrates GlobalPlatform's long term commitment to supporting issuers and application providers by both facilitating the emergence of a standardized smart card infrastructure, and developing an open and successful compliance ecosystem with test tool suppliers."

This first initiative, relating to GlobalPlatform's UICC Configuration and Mapping Guidelines v2.1.1, will culminate in a 'TestFest' in 2010: a series of meetings that will bring together GlobalPlatform member organizations to perform tests between card products and test tools in a variety of multi-vendor and multi-tool combinations.  The event will provide an opportunity to validate the compliance of both test tools and test cards to the GlobalPlatform configurations before they are launched to the global market.  Once the test tools are released, they will guarantee the stability, quality and interoperability of GlobalPlatform market configuration compliant solutions.

Gil concludes: "The TestFest concept will be replicated for future releases of GlobalPlatform Specifications and Configurations.  In addition to confirming the integrity of test tools, the environment will also offer participants the ability to interact with one another for the purpose of improving their individual products.  We believe that this new approach to our compliance program will better support different sectors adopting GlobalPlatform technology by providing test suites which focus on their individual markets."

Details regarding the first GlobalPlatform TestFest will be communicated in early 2010.  If you are a test tool provider, and would be interested in becoming a GlobalPlatform member, please contact secretariat@globalplatform.org.

-ENDS-

For further media information, please contact Georgina D'Arcy or Sarah Jones at iseepr: sarah@iseepr.co.uk / georgina@iseepr.co.uk or on + (0) 1943 468007

Notes to Editors

About GlobalPlatform
GlobalPlatform is the global leader in smart card infrastructure development and its proven, technical specifications for cards, devices and systems are known as the standard for smart card infrastructure. GlobalPlatform is a member driven association with cross-industry representation from all world continents. For more information about GlobalPlatform, visit: www.globalplatform.org