Frost & Sullivan’s “World Smart Card Markets” reports smart
card unit shipments topped 2.02 billion units in 2003. The
growth consultancy projects quantities to reach 3.11
billion in 2008, but says growth could be hindered by the
multiplicity of protocols for contactless cards.
While North America still uses chip-based banking cards as
a “product differentiation” measure, Frost & Sullivan
expects European, Asian, Latin American and South American
banks and card associations to increase smart card use.
The main reason for smart card growth, the firm reports,
can be attributed to the enterprise security market, and is
expected to increase as the demand for government
identification grows.
The “World Smart Card Markets” evaluates the uptake of
smart cards in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, North
America, Latin America and the Asia Pacific.
