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IP Connectivity Task Force

GlobalPlatform launched the Internet Protocol (IP) Connectivity Task Force in April 2010 to ensure that GlobalPlatform Specifications and Configurations support and drive the future integration of secure chip technology with the IP landscape. The group brings members together to discuss new business requirements for network-capable objects, and to identify how GlobalPlatform technology can progress to meet these advancements.

There is a trend for all devices to be integrated with IP technology so that the end user can connect with the IP network. In today's marketplace, a device without this level of connectivity can become obsolete. Different industry bodies such as the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) and International Organization for Standardization (ISO) have already started to address the issue of IP connectivity. The intention of the task force, however, is to ensure that whatever the environment or usage, there is a standard solution that allows a service provider to deploy the solution.

As business requirements unfold, the task force will work with the relevant Technical Committees to look at how GlobalPlatform Specifications can be advanced to encourage developers to capitalize on the chip's ability to connect with IP-based infrastructures, also known as the 'Internet of Things'. GlobalPlatform will be challenged to integrate the chip into the general purpose IP network to solve matters such as how to obtain an IP address within a home network or how to enable the integration of IP-based services. The group will also examine the means of protecting the chip and its services, and new ways to communicate over IP networks.

Last year, the GlobalPlatform Card Networked Framework v1.0 was released – a technical document which enables a chip to securely and effectively be managed, based on web technology. In 2008 GlobalPlatform also documented a variety of ways to upgrade a secure chip program to facilitate IP network connectivity to ensure it accommodates a range of implementer requirements in Amendment B to Card Specification v2.2. GlobalPlatform will build on this contribution to the marketplace and support a rapid migration of secure chips to IP connected environments.

2011 Activities and Priorities:

  • To identify and document use cases for chip and IP networks and to define requirements, both business and technical, within these use cases
  • To identify how GlobalPlatform technology (existing and future) can be leveraged and, in doing so, contribute to the growth of this technology in a standardized and highly specified manner
  • To analyze the business benefits of IP connectivity solutions and identify gaps in GlobalPlatform's own set of specifications
  • To contribute, if necessary, to specifications and standards of other groups to facilitate the integration of smart cards within the IP connectivity landscape.

For further details, or to get involved in this activity, please visit the member only website or contact secretariat@globalplatform.org.