SAN JOSE, Calif., March 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Sony Electronics today announced that its FeliCa contactless integrated circuit chip technology is included in the newest version of the Blackboard Inc. campus commerce and security solution, enabling a unique ecosystem for access and payment developed specifically for higher education institutions in North America.  

The Blackboard Transact™ contactless solution offers a secure environment that enables a student to make payments, gain building access, and provide identification all with one card.  This fully integrated technology platform allows students to make a variety of purchases and access secure buildings with a simple tap or wave of the card.

The technology is already in place at Santa Clara University, which partnered with Blackboard to pilot the contactless system.  

"Blackboard's technology platform is the first to bring FeliCa technology to colleges and universities in the U.S., enabling a fast, safe and convenient system that integrates well with many technologies that campuses already have," said Makoto Yamada, general manager of Sony Electronics' FeliCa Americas division.

Developed by Sony, the FeliCa microchip provides a fast, convenient and secure all-in-one solution platform for multiple applications, including electronic payment transactions, access, interactive signage and membership or loyalty rewards systems.  The chip combines processing, storage and communication functions, and can be implemented in a variety of ways including cards, key chains and mobile phones.

The Blackboard Transact contactless solution features FeliCa technology with a secure file system and data communication structure that enables communication between the software, the card reader and the FeliCa-powered card via mutual authentication and encrypted data transfer.

Deployed in Asia for more than ten years, FeliCa technology has been the basis for transportation access and merchant communities where customers can easily and rapidly purchase goods and services.  

Sony continues to extend FeliCa technology into new markets globally, and a number of pilot programs utilizing the technology are under way in the U.S.  FeliCa technology complies with the Near Field Communication (NFC) standards.  

Editor's Note: For press information and digital images, visit Sony Electronics' news and information web site at www.sony.com/news. More information about FeliCa technology is available at www.sony.net/Products/felica.

FeliCa is the contactless IC card technology developed by Sony Corporation. FeliCa is a trademark of Sony Corporation.

Blackboard Transact is a registered trademark of Blackboard Inc.

SOURCE Sony Electronics

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