Oberthur Technologies Launches Card Design Service

PARIS, September 27, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Oberthur Technologies, a leading innovator in the fields of payment cards, SIM cards and related services, now offers issuers a range of design services.

The Smart Design suite of services provides card issuers with a quick and easy way to achieve unique card designs that are guaranteed to work well within the production process. With more than 30 years' collective experience of designing and producing cards for the financial services and telecoms sector, Oberthur Technologies has created a dedicated Smart Design team to help issuers create eye-catching front-of-wallet card designs using the latest card technologies.

    Smart Design initially offers three options:

    - Smart Design: Consult - consultation with fully trained
      design experts to ensure design agencies utilise the best manufacturing
      techniques.

    - Smart Design: Refresh - using design expertise in
      combination with advanced Smart Plastics technologies, the Refresh
      option allows existing card designs to be updated for a fresh new look.

    - Smart Design: Create - in close co-operation with issuer
      marketing teams, new card and fulfilment material designs are created
      to meet issuers' needs, whilst ensuring the design will work
      effectively within the production process.

The company also offers design services for other printing media, including card carriers, envelopes and inserts, as well as payment and SIM card packaging solutions, allowing financial card issuers and telecoms operators to further enhance their brand image.

Oberthur's Smart Design team offers solid experience working for international companies in the creative advertising, online media, magazine and publication as well as the card industry to guarantee a solid creative approach for the issuer's projects. Issuers will benefit from this highly skilled staff to create state-of-the-art cards from a wide range of plastic technologies including clear and coloured core cards, different shapes, as well as environmentally friendly options. The Smart Design team can ensure the card design process is not only efficient and fast, but also that banks and operators will have full compliance with the relevant standards from the outset.

"Card issuers often spend large sums of money on creating the perfect design, only to find the design is not 100% suitable for manufacturing," comments Stuart Yaxley, Head of Card Services Product Line at Oberthur Technologies. "Our Smart Design services allow issuers to get it right the first time for those critical card launches."

Smart Design is now available and further strengthens the complete end-to-end service that Oberthur Technologies offers its customers, from initial concept to distribution of the finished card.

About Oberthur Technologies

With sales of 905 million Euros in 2009, Oberthur Technologies is a world leader in the field of secure technologies. Innovation and excellence ensure Oberthur Technologies' strong positioning in its main target markets:

    - Card Systems: The world's second largest provider of security
      and identification based solutions and services based on smart card
      technology for mobile, payment, transport, digital TV and convergence
      markets.
    - Identity: Leading international supplier for the manufacture and
      personalization of secure identity documents such as passport, identity
      card, driving license or health care card - traditional and electronic
      - and associated services for both governmental and corporate markets.
    - Security printing: A key player in the secure printing industry
      specialized in the production of banknotes, checks and other security
      documents in more than fifty countries.
    - Cash protection: World leader in the emerging market of
      intelligent systems to secure cash-in-transit and ATM.

Close to its customers, Oberthur Technologies benefits from an industrial and commercial presence across all five continents.

Oberthur Technologies S.A. is a limited liability company (societe anonyme) registered in France with its registered office at 50 quai Michelet 92 532 Levallois Perret, France. Oberthur Technologies S.A.'s corporate registration number is 340 709 534 R.C.S. Paris.

Website: http://www.oberthur.com

SOURCE Oberthur Technologies