Iris Australia First to Develop Web-Based Iris Recognition Services; Iris Australia and Iridian Technologies Sign Technology License Agreement

Business Wire, Feb 25, 2002

Business Editors/Hi-Tech Writers

CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA & MOORESTOWN, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 25, 2002

Iris Australia today announced a development initiative to deliver hosted iris recognition security services that will be marketed worldwide.

The development initiative comes on the heels of a newly signed Technology License Agreement with Iridian Technologies, which permits development of specific iris based applications.

Iris Australia will deliver unique web-based authentication services later this year. This new breed of outsourced IT services will offer one-to-many searches against large populations to ensure absolute identity and aid in the elimination of fraud.

These services and the innovative business models which can be built around them are being tested in Australia in government and commercial segments, with full rollout being currently planned with a number of Australian and foreign enterprises.

The signed agreement reflects well on Australia as a centre of IT innovation and on Iris Australia's depth of core iris recognition expertise since 1997.

"Our ability to engage Australian companies willing to embrace this leading edge technology was a key factor in securing this contract," said Bruce Lyman, CEO of Iris Australia. "We were able to demonstrate an Australian IT market place which contained companies prepared to be adventurous, innovative and collaborative." Lyman also noted the Australian market place allowed his company to position itself with key global companies in Europe, Japan and the US in collaborative relationships for rapid take-up of new iris products. "We can engage these companies very openly here in Australia, and we expect these strategic partnerships will underscore the ability of Iris Australia to rapidly commercialise the opportunities opened up by this license," said Lyman.

"This agreement is a welcome evolution in our business relationship with Iris Australia," said Bill Voltmer, CEO of Iridian Technologies. "They have demonstrated a clear commitment to iris recognition engineering and general business excellence. We anticipate a continuing close relationship over many years, with Iris Australia playing key roles in application software and hardware, technical research, and the development of new markets."

About Iridian Technologies

Iridian Technologies, Inc. of Moorestown, NJ leads the world in research, development and marketing of authentication technologies based on iris recognition - the most accurate biometric identifier.

Holder of exclusive US and international patents on the core concepts and technologies behind iris recognition, Iridian offers unparalleled security for physical facilities, information networks and electronic transactions.

With blue-chip investors and Fortune 1000 customers in banking, transportation, healthcare and security as well as law enforcement and government, Iridian Technologies is committed to providing the authentication infrastructure critical for today's secure physical access, rapidly evolving e-commerce needs and for tomorrow's wireless world. For more information, visit www.iridiantech.com.

About Iris Australia

Iris Australia specialises in the development and distribution of Iridian Technologies iris-recognition process. As a Technology Licence Agreement holder, and with distribution rights for the entire Asia Pacific, Iris Australia has developed a regional centre of excellence for iris solutions.

Based in Sydney and Canberra, and represented regionally in New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan, Iris Australia has a growing client base including major government agencies.

Web site www.irisaustralia.com