business news ISO develops standards on biometrics interoperability Geneva, Switzerland Biometric data interchange formats provide the common language that allows for interoperability between different biometric technologies. As the field of applications has grown to give rise to different generations of such formats, so too has the need to ensure they are all compatible with one another. New International Standards have just been published that help to do just that. A reliable means to verify identities, biometrics is a technology that is increasingly widespread, used in many domains such as border controls using machinereadable passports, healthcare, voter identification and restricted access areas. As the science has evolved, so too has the coding information behind it known as biometric data interchange formats. In order to ensure interoperability and correct data interchange between different biometric applications and systems, the expert committee on biometrics of ISO and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) has already developed a number of International Standards for a wide variety of applications. As the technology evolves, however, so do the data elements and formats. Which is why, in order to avoid any future interoperability issues, the experts are developing an additional series of standards that provide the formats capable of being extended in a defined way. The first in this series have just been published and include ISO/IEC 39794-1, Information technology – Extensible biometric data interchange formats – Part 1: Framework; ISO/IEC 39794-4, Information technology – Extensible biometric data interchange formats – Part 4: Finger image data; ISO/IEC 39794-5, Information technology – Extensible biometric data interchange formats – Part 5: Biometric data interchange formats provide the common language that allows for interoperability between different biometric technologies. Face image data. These standards will supersede the corresponding parts of the ISO/IEC 19794 series for data interchange formats, and it is anticipated they will be adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) as the basis for their standard 9303 on machine-readable travel documents later this year. The ISO/IEC 39794 series will be complemented by future additions, including specific parts related to iris, vascular, full body and gait image data. Patrick Grother, Chair of the ISO/IEC technical committee responsible for the ISO/IEC 39794 series, said it is the latest in a large and comprehensive set of International Standards that support interoperability in biometrics. “We intend to have internationally agreed standards for all biometric modalities, taking into account the diverse range of applications, the often sensitive nature of the data and the various regulatory and jurisdictional requirements,” he said. The ISO/IEC 39794 series was developed by joint ISO/IEC technical committee JTC 1, Information technology, subcommittee SC 37, Biometrics, the secretariat of which is held by ANSI, ISO’s member for the USA. Motorola to acquire Indigovision for £30.4 million Edingburgh, UK Motorola has announced that it is to acquire the UK manufacturer of end-to-end video solutions, Indigovision, for a recommended cash sum of GBP £30.4 million ( approximately US $37.2 million), which Motorola will fund through existing cash resources. It is planned that the acquisition will be finalised in May 2020. According to an Indigovision announcement, the purchase price represents a premium of approximately 116 per cent to the average Closing Price per Indigovision share of 187.6 pence during the 12-month period ended on the Last Practicable Date. Motorola Solutions, a leading global provider of mission critical communications and analytics, has a strong presence in the large and expanding area of video security. Motorola Solutions’ offerings include high-definition cameras, advanced video analytics, network video management hardware and software and access control solutions. Motorola Solutions believes that Indigovision’s range of products, global presence and customer base are highly complementary to Motorola Solutions’ existing presence in video security and therefore believes that the acquisition will provide Motorola Solutions with enhanced geographical reach across a wider customer base. The news of the acquisition comes following the final results from Indigovision on the 5th March 2020 stating that sales for the financial year ended 31 December 2019 were $50.2m, representing a 9.2% increase over 2018. In addition, over the last 12 months the company has appointed Vikki Macleod to the Board in March 2019, adding expertise in software development, appointed a new Head of Marketing, Vice-President of Product and Engineering, and Head of Customer Care and Operations from outwith the business, and it has strengthened its Senior leadership team. Additionally, Indigovision also acquired Agorasys SA in November 2019 to enhance the company’s software product offering. Commenting on the acquisition by Motorola, Pedro Vasco Simoes, Chief Executive Officer of In- digovision said: “The access we will now have to Motorola Solutions’ range of innovative technologies will create new opportunities for Indigovision and enable us to bring an exciting proposition to the market that allows us to further deliver on our goal of delivering safety, security and business intelligence.” Commenting on the acquisition for Motorola Solutions, John Kedzierski, Senior Vice President, Video Security Solutions, said: “We share Indigovision’s commitment to providing next-generation, end-to-end video security solutions that enhance safety, security and efficiency. Indigovision’s end-to-end offering, global presence and customer base will complement our existing and growing presence in video security and analytics.” dete kto r in te r n at i on al • 1 9