New Supplier for CDMA SIM Cards

Smart card solution provider Setec has said that it will introduce a new SIM card, R-UIM (Removable User Identity Module), for CDMA networks in the second quarter of this year. The R-UIM card functions much like the GSM SIM card and can also be used in a GSM mobile phone. Setec has developed the card especially for the Chinese market, but it can be used in other CDMA networks as well.

In China, Setec has a local partner, the smart card company ASGCC (Aerospace Golden Card Co. Ltd.), which delivers Setec's smart card products to the Chinese market. Mr Pekka Santanen, Senior Vice President of Setec, regards the R-UIM card as a significant product for Setec considering new markets "With a reasonable investment in R & D, Setec has developed a new product that has a promising market potential. Within the next three years, the R-UIM card has a global potential of 60 to 100 million cards. In the GSM market, the volume is 800 to 1000 million cards. Setec will launch the R-UIM card with a toolkit application that enables wireless value added services also in CDMA networks".

Until recently, smart cards have not been used in CDMA networks and the necessary information required for user authentication has been stored in the mobile phone instead of a SIM card. The introduction of R-UIM has been driven by the need to make the GSM and CDMA networks globally interoperable and hence enable 'plastic roaming' when travelling around the world.'"

Posted to the site on 24th April 2002