Paragon ID takes a unique and world-leading position in Mobile ticketing applications with strategic investment in airweb

Paragon ID (Euronext Paris - FR0011980077 - PID), the leading provider of identification solutions for Transport, e-ID, Traceability, Brand Protection and Payment, is pleased to announce the strengthening of its smart solutions offering with a strategic investment in the share capital of airweb, a specialist in mobile ticketing applications.

Having already successfully deployed mobile ticketing solutions in the public transport systems of a number of cities, using its secure NFC Host Card Emulation technology, Paragon ID completes its mobile offerings through this strategic investment.

Based in Paris, airweb is a leading digital technologies expert, offering web apps and mobile ticketing solutions, predominantly in the Mass Transit and Leisure markets. Since the launch in 2016 of its software-as-a-service platform, including Mobile ticketing & passenger information, more than 20 transport authorities have chosen airweb's QR code-based solution, offering its customers a seamless journey with efficient ticketing and information. This makes airweb's offering the most deployed mobile ticketing solution in France today.

Paragon ID already has a world-leading position in ticketing for Mass Transit & Smart Cities and is constantly looking for new ways to help mass transit operators implement the most efficient & innovative ticketing technologies. In recent years, Paragon ID has developed secure software solutions for all major standards in the industry including “NFC enabling” software, currently used in mobile applications in Nice and Toulouse.

This new partnership creates the opportunity for Paragon ID & airweb to leverage their respective solutions and market positions to deploy, worldwide, the most comprehensive & easily scalable mobile ticketing platform in the market.

The combined platform will serve the needs of small, medium and larger transport networks with similar architecture and services, whether with airweb's existing barcode/QR code solution lending itself to a standalone & quickly-implemented option, or with the latest NFC solutions adapted to larger networks' need for compatibility with existing smart ticketing systems.

John Rogers, Paragon ID Chairman & CEO, comments:
“Paragon ID's leading position in the supply of transport tickets and cards and its strong relationships with many cities across Europe, USA and the rest of world, coupled with airweb's know-how in the deployment of mobile solutions, gives us the opportunity to widen our offering and support smart cities in their transition towards digital solutions. We are delighted to be joining forces with airweb and we look forward to leveraging our combined expertise to develop a winning solution that can be a “real game changer” for both our companies.”

Clem Garvey, Paragon ID Deputy CEO, adds:
“This new platform is a stepping stone to boosting our development in digital payment services, enhancing our access to a market that is estimated to grow by 50%+¹ over the next two years. The completion of our mobile ticketing offering with the airweb technology will afford further opportunity for cooperation with our existing partners and technology stakeholders, with whom we continue to develop and consolidate long-term, strategic relationships.“

Xavier Debbasch, airweb CEO says:
“We are very proud and excited to start this strategic partnership with Paragon ID. This is a powerful association combining airweb's digital culture and agility and Paragon ID's NFC technology and market position. We are convinced we are setting a new standard and will provide our existing and future customers a great mobile ticketing customer experience.”

About airweb
airweb develops and installs mobile apps and other digital solutions. In 2017, it reported revenue numbers of €1.5m.
The company is based in St Cloud - close to Paris - and has a team mostly focused on IOS & Android apps based on a flexible back end technology.
In 2015, a pivotal move was engineered, with a digital service offering mass transit users a complete solution for mobile ticketing & passenger information. This solution has been chosen by more than 20 cities & regions with successful implementations in 2016 and 17.
In the first half of 2018, airweb launched tixiPASS, a standardized & scalable ticketing offer of its original platform to propose interoperability & lower access cost to its mass transit solution.
More information at airweb.fr.

About Paragon ID
Paragon ID is a leader in identification solutions, in particular in the e-ID, Transport & Smart Cities and Traceability & Brand Protection and Payment sectors.
Using the latest technologies such as RFID and NFC, Paragon ID provides smart cards, tickets, labels and tags to worldwide clients in diverse markets including public transport, manufacturing, logistics, gaming and retail.
Paragon ID employs more than 600 staff, with manufacturing sites in three continents (US, Europe and Asia), close to its customers.
Paragon ID is a part of Paragon Group, which is a leading provider of Identification and Customer Communications services, and has a total of more than €650 million turnover and close to 5,000 employees. Paragon Group combines generations of experience with the latest innovations in technology and smart data to enable responsive and meaningful interactions between organisations and their customers.
For further information about Paragon Group, visit www.paragon-europe.com.
Paragon ID is listed on Euronext Paris. Share identification: Paragon ID – ISIN Code: FR0011980077 – Mnemonic code: PID.
More information at Paragon-id.com

Contacts

1 According to Juniper Research1 Oct. 17, Market for mobile payment of transport and event tickets will grow from 14 billion in 2018 to 23 billion in 2020.