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Gemalto NV held nearly 35% of the world's smart card market in 2008, easily besting rivals, but Oberthur Technologies, another French vendor, has crept up in the rankings, according to a report from United Kingdom-based IMS Research. IMS based its findings on shipments of all types of smart cards, including banking cards, identification documents and SIMs for mobile phones. The group drew from data in company reports and its own estimates, John Devlin, research director for financial and ID technologies, tells CardLine Global. Germany-based Giesecke & Devrient holds the second spot with no more than 15% market share. Oberthur holds the third spot but has moved closer to the Giesecke. The firm declines to release more-specific numbers from the report. Among the factors that pushed Oberthur forward was its acquisition last year of Swedish card vendor XponCard, Devlin says. Gemalto is all but certain to retain the top spot for the foreseeable future, he says. However, it could face increased competition from other companies in the sale of low-cost SIM cards, which represents the largest part of the smart card market, Devlin says. In fact, the sale of SIMs will help shield smart card vendors from the effects of the global recession, he says. "The market is well-positioned to survive the wider downtown," he says. Franco-German smart card vendor Sagem Orga GmbH "has made some good inroads" in increasing its smart card shipments, Devlin adds.
