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Technology Stocks : Identix (IDNX) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: brad greene who wrote (19479)	12/15/2000 1:42:58 PM
From: R. Jaynes	Respond to of 26039

What the heck! Since there is no news from IDX and the markets stink, I'm posting the following stories and interpret them with a positive spin; regardless of the current gloomy outlook for the economy and the markets, biometrics is moving forward no matter how small the steps may appear to be. ++++++++++++++++ Precise Biometrics wins fingerprint technology contract in Taiwan The Swedish biometrics company Precise Biometrics AB has received a fingerprint technology contract from the Taipei County Government in Taiwan. The county government will use Precise Biometrics' technology to improve information security with fingerprint readers. The value of the order, which initially consists of around 100 units, has not been provided. web.lexis-nexis.com +++++++++++++++++ Kingston's newest endeavor: biometrics TECHNOLOGY: The memory maker brings out a fingerprint reader for computer security, joining a growing market. December 15, 2000 By TAMARA CHUANG The Orange County Register Bad memory? Kingston Technology Co. can help. No, not with its Value RAM or other computer memory products. Rather, the Fountain Valley firm will announce today its venture into biometrics, the burgeoning $60 million market for security products that scan fingerprints, eyeball irises or other body parts to identify computer users. "We're trying to get noticed for reasons other than memory," said Andy Goldberg, product manager of Kingston's peripheral-products division. Kingston's new product, called the IdentiGuard, attaches to a computer and links passwords to a fingerprint. Put your finger on the IdentiGuard's tiny screen, and your computer will log you on, remember your E*Trade account password and prevent others from accessing your computer. Kingston licensed the technology from Lake Forest-based Ethentica Inc. and uses software developed by I/O Software Inc. in Riverside. IdentiGuard, which will be available for less than $200 via online retailers starting Thursday, is part of Kingston's growing peripheral division launched in 1993. Peripherals now make up at least 20 percent of Kingston's overall business. Biometrics is expected to add about $3.5 million in sales next year - just a smidgen of the privately held company's $1.5 billion in annual revenue. The biometrics industry is projected to grow to $600 million in sales by 2003, according to the International Biometric Group, a New York consulting firm. The industry got a boost earlier this year when Microsoft Corp. vowed to integrate biometrics into its software. With Microsoft and Kingston getting into the field, biometrics is gearing up to hit mainstream, said Michael Thieme, senior consultant at International Biometric Group. "It's a very young industry. A lot of time and money has been put into matching fingerprints, and engineers wondering how (to) pull information from a fingerprint. That's been the hard part," Thieme said. "But now, the challenge is making it user friendly." ocregister.com Rick