Study: Biometrics Ushering New Age Of Security In Asia Pacific Region

From Security Products

From May 1, 2008

National ID and e-Passport programs are contributing to the growth and development of the biometrics market in the Asia Pacific region.

With these programs underway, market participants have realized the need for proper standardization in order for all these projects to be successful. In the coming years, biometrics products will be standardized and interoperable with other security systems, providing a much higher level of security.

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan Biometrics Markets in Asia Pacific, finds that the market earned revenues of $126.3 million in 2007 and estimates this to reach $1643.1 million in 2012.

National ID projects and e-Passport programs are providing the biggest potential for biometrics in APAC today. With the cost of biometric readers declining, biometric border control security is also being implemented in many countries across Asia. Furthermore, with the e-Passport program implementation coming to an end by 2008, new issuance of passports by the countries under the U.S. VISA Waiver program will significantly add to the growth in unit shipment.

“The national ID of Malaysia is already equipped with a thumbprint template and the Indian national ID will also be equipped with a fingerprint template,” said Frost & Sullivan Senior Research Analyst Navin Rajendra. “While India has already begun assembling a database of its citizens, countries such as Japan, China and Indonesia are expected to take to biometrics shortly.”

However, the high cost of implementing the biometric system has been a restraint globally and the same is likely to be the case in the APAC region. End users looking at a security system are often weary of the high cost involved and tend to wait until there is a reduction in prices.

“This apart, the prolonged cycle time for the implementation of a biometric project is a significant restraint, especially when organizations are looking at a quick and seamless implementation,” Rajendra said. “Depending on the size of the project, the cycle time can vary anywhere from 6 to 18 months.”

The APAC market is seeing convergence of technologies and applications. It is absolutely essential for market participants to bring about interoperability and standardization in this era of convergence. Through mutual and proper cooperation between system integrators, biometric systems can be seamlessly integrated with other security systems with reduced downtime.