Sagem Wireless, a leader in the design and delivery of customized connected lifestyle devices and services, announced today that it has formed a partnership with UPEK to bring fingerprint identity capabilities to a range of new devices that Sagem Wireless is expected to launch later this year, including new Android-based mobile devices. Sagem Wireless selected UPEK for its superior fingerprint technology, which offers industry-leading recognition accuracy, ruggedness, power efficiency, and enhanced touch-input capabilities as well as its support of a standards-based, open-platform software solution.

Mobile operators, device manufacturers and application developers need identity management tools that are both convenient and secure to support the growth of mobile services such as application marketplaces, m-banking, m-commerce, mobile enterprise applications, and mobile productivity tools. By offering an open, standards-based platform for mobile identity services, the strategic partnership between Sagem Wireless and UPEK enables an ecosystem of operators, manufacturers and application developers to seamlessly utilize fingerprint identity capabilities to personalize mobile services and make mobile applications more secure, faster and easier to use.

With fingerprint identity solutions offered by Sagem Wireless and UPEK, mobile applications and services derive benefits such as:

• Simplified user experience without any need to remember and re-type personal information such as usernames, passwords and account numbers. Users just employ a fast and simple touch gesture to identify themselves.
• Quicker and easier purchases from mobile application marketplaces and on-line stores along with better protection against identity theft and piracy
• Faster and more secure mobile payments, mobile banking and other new mobile applications

"The emergence of new connected lifestyle devices is changing the way users interact with and consume mobile services," said Jerome Nadel, executive vice president of marketing and user experience at Sagem Wireless. "Both security and usability are critical to reducing perceptions of risk, improving convenience, and encouraging usage. Biometric solutions such as fingerprint sensors simplify the process of user identification, providing faster and more secure access to personalized services and transactions. Sagem Wireless will continue to integrate fingerprint biometrics in a range of our connected devices. We're delighted to be working with UPEK to incorporate their technology into some of our most exciting and game changing devices to come."

"By combining Sagem Wireless' deep understanding of the consumer experience with an open, standards-based approach to identity services, our partnership will further accelerate an ecosystem of application developers who can utilize the convenience and security of fingerprint touch capabilities," said Carl Temme, vice president of business development and strategic marketing at UPEK. "By developing the service and the device hand-in-hand, Sagem Wireless and UPEK are helping to spur innovative applications that take advantage of the full potential of fingerprint ID capabilities."