Under the terms of the agreement, CIC will license its complete SignatureOne suite of biometric and electronic signature products to Hypercom, initially for incorporation into Hypercom's 32-bit Optimum L4100 and L4250 signature capture card payment devices and for resale.

"There is a clear and compelling need for the industry to address electronic signatures across the entire enterprise to facilitate business process automation, while minimizing fraud and identity theft," said Hypercom Chief Scientist and Technology Officer Jonatan Schmidt. "This alliance with CIC again demonstrates our ability to quickly identify, engage and harness advanced technologies that can benefit the market now and going forward. That responsiveness strengthens our ability to compete globally for greater market share and profits."

"This agreement affirms the value that our combined offerings bring to our customers and the global market in general with best-of-breed hardware, software and services," said CIC Chief Product Officer Russ Davis. "With Hypercom's presence in over 100 countries, this relationship will expand our market coverage into regions with significant demand for eSignature technologies."

CIC's SignatureOne suite includes the SignatureOne Profile Server, Sign-it software and iSign software developer's toolkit. CIC's SignatureOne Profile Server provides user authentication, profile administration and transaction receipts. The server architecture uses a common process and methodology to provide a uniform program interface for multiple signature methods and multiple capture devices, simplifying enterprisewide integration of business process automation tasks requiring eSignatures, and eliminating the need for paper copies and ink signatures. This capability enables Hypercom to offer transaction-based eSignature services as part of middleware solutions, leveraging its existing network product line. CIC will receive royalties or a license fee on a per-transaction basis. The agreement also provides Hypercom with full licensing rights to CIC's entire patent portfolio so that Hypercom can use its broad market access and distribution channels to offer solutions that CIC does not have available.

Hypercom's highly popular Optimum L4100 is a full-color signature capture terminal with a 64K color 5.7" 1/4 VGA screen enabling exact reproduction of corporate logos, advertising and promotional messages at the point-of-sale. It includes an advanced screen protection and replacement system, an exclusive bi-directional dual-sided magnetic stripe reader that allows cards to be swiped in any direction, VISA PED certification, optional EMV-approved smart card reader, and optional contactless RF reader. The new Optimum L4250 is a high-performance signature capture payment device suited for all multi-lane configurations. It features a 220x80 pixel 16-grayscale-touch screen LCD capable of delivering crisp on-screen advertisements, scrolling line item display and other store messages at the point-of-service, and the same 32-bit architecture as the Optimum L4100.

The two companies have already established their first win with a solution enabling legally compliant electronic signatures from CIC to be captured via Hypercom's secure L4100 multi-lane payment terminals for consumers executing cellular service contracts at various retail telecommunications stores. The companies are jointly pursuing additional opportunities in the financial services, retail and health care markets.