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ORIGIN-J : True Java Implementation For Cards
 ID Data and its partners are set to revolutionise the world of smart cards with the launch of ORIGIN-J using true Java technology. The UK card technology company has teamed up with Atmel, the global microchip manufacturer, and OneEighty Software to put the power of desktop Java technology on to a plastic card, bringing massive benefits to providers of card-based services across the board.
Java, the power behind the internet and most corporate computer networks, is the most widely used programming language today. By shrinking its code size from many megabytes to only 50 kilobytes, it is now compact enough to fit in a smart card - but retains the power and benefits of desktop Java.
 ORIGIN-J supports multiple applications, operating simultaneously a number of applications on one card, which can be used for everything from mobile communications to buying an airline ticket. It means mobile phone users can talk, play on-screen games and make e-payments all at the same time. ID Data expects big demand from banking and loyalty operators as well as from mobile-phone operators.
Paul Knight, Director ID Data, said: "This is going to revolutionise the industry. We've taken all the benefits and functionality of desktop Java and put them into a smart card. When we talk to potential customers, at first they don't believe us. Then they go away to ponder the many ways that ORIGIN-J can work to save them money and win new business."
ORIGIN-J is a virtual machine that executes true JavaTM bytecode, bringing the benefits of true Java technology to the smart card market for the first time. This gives card issuers and scheme operators' distinct advantages - among them interoperability, performance and flexibility in choice of application developer.
 ID Data and OneEighty chose the Atmel AT90SC6464C, because of performance, its ready availability, the quality of the tools, and the memory configuration in the form of Flash and EEPROM. The memory configuration was particularly important in accommodating the number and size of applications envisaged by end-customers. The use of Flash memory makes for a re-configurable system, well suited to adding and updating applications in the field, as well as "Over-The-Air" downloading. The AT90SC6464C is a member of a family of secure microcontroller products, providing for a smooth transition to a lower-priced ROM product when chip unit cost becomes critical. AT90SC family products are capable of meeting stringent security criteria, with security certifications up to EAL4+.
ORIGIN-J is licensed exclusively through ID Data for implementation on smart cards.
Peter Dzwig, CEO Of OneEighty said, "It has proven a challenge to find appropriate silicon, but the AT90SC6464C definitely met the requirements, even when we pushed the boundaries - and we pushed them very hard at times"
Benoit Makowka, Atmel's Marketing Manager for Mobile Telecommunications Secure ICs, commented: "We really think OneEighty's full Java implementation can bring a real solution to the interoperability problem in the market. OneEighty has perfectly understood and used the concept of secure Flash based products, and their solution can use other products of Atmel AT90SC's family, to achieve the end customer expectations in term of price, security and performance."
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