Petah Tikva, Israel – March 10, 2008 –  PowerID Ltd., the industry leader in the field of battery-assisted, passive (BAP) RFID technology, announced today it has concluded a strategic partnership with STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM), a worldwide leading supplier of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chips.

Within the framework of the cooperative efforts, PowerID will work with STMicroelectronics to foster the further penetration of BAP technology into existing and new markets.  The companies will explore, in a future deal, ways to co-market EPCglobal Class 1, Generation 2 technology to customers that demand high performance RFID where the performance of passive RFID is limited and where active RFID technologies are too expensive or bulky.  Based on the known technological constraints, the companies estimate that general availability of PowerID’s BAP EPCglobal Class 1, Generation 2 label would occur in Q2 2008.

The co-developed technologies will be based on the marriage of the unique technology of both companies: PowerID’s thin and flexible, environment-friendly battery and STMicroelectronics’ integrated circuit family designed to support BAP technology.  The resulting technology will provide affordable, high performance RFID products in the ultra high frequency (UHF) range (850-960 MHz) for tracking high value assets in challenging environments.  

Both companies are longstanding members of the RFID community.  PowerID has stood on the forefront of the BAP RFID field since 2003, and STMicroelectronics has been a leading provider of HF and UHF RFID chips.  Prior to co-developing the integrated circuit for PowerID’s BAP label, STMicroelectronics released a product line for use with regular passive RFID technology.  Active in RFID standards bodies, both companies are integral members of working groups that are defining BAP and sensor-enabled BAP RFID standards.

“To date, PowerID’s BAP technology has been successfully deployed at industry-leading logistics providers, paper manufacturers, aerospace companies, and automobile manufacturers,” said Erez Kahani, Chief Executive Officer of PowerID Ltd.  “As the pioneer in the BAP field, we are thrilled that a market leader such as STMicroelectronics has chosen to partner with us. We look forward to developing and marketing BAP products together and to further expanding and deepening the BAP RFID footprint worldwide.”

About PowerID Ltd.
PowerID is the industry leader in the field of Battery-Assisted, Passive (BAP) RFID. The company provides reliable and cost-effective BAP RFID labels for selected applications in industries involving freight, metals, chemicals, paper, people tracking, and cold chain.  

With corporate headquarters in Israel, PowerID is a privately-held company backed by first-tier investors such as Partech International, Apax Partners, Amadeus Capital Partners, Infinity Venture Capital, and Bank of America. 

For more information, visit http://www.power-id.com