StepNexus, the owner of the Multos multi-application smart card operating system, has acquired Hive Minded, the company that created and licenses .NET-based Nectar smart cards and technology.
StepNexus is a holding company of the Multos technology, which was acquired by a consortium consisting of Oak Hill Venture Partners, Hitachi Keycorp and MasterCard International in November 2005. The holding company was established in the US and in the UK.
The company says it intends to integrate Hive Minded's .NET platform into the high-security key management infrastructure, which currently supports more than 50 million Multos smart cards issued worldwide.
StepNexus says issuers of Nectar smart cards will benefit from the authorisation and control offered by the system and application providers will benefit from the privacy of their content when loading and removing applications from Nectar smart cards or devices.
John Wood, CEO of StepNexus, says: "Nectar and the Multos operating system are complementary and symbiotic. StepNexus will provide a seamless architecture and secure trusted environment platform."
Wood adds: "Across this range smart card issuers will be able to benefit from the high security that Multos provides together with the development flexibility and integration of .NET."
All Hive Minded staff will be transferred to StepNexus.