NEC and SITA announce global aviation partnership agreement to deliver the future of digital identity at airports

NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE: 6701) and SITA today announced a global partnership to develop market-leading solutions that enable a secure walk-through travel experience at airports, leveraging NEC’s I:Delight identity management platform together with SITA Smart Path and SITA Flex.

The partnership comes as airports and airlines increasingly look to low-touch and automated passenger processing in order to comply with new hygiene requirements following the global COVID-19 pandemic, in line with recommendations from Airports Council International and IATA.

Through the partnership SITA and NEC will further unlock the potential of seamless next-generation passenger processing solutions, making mobile enabled and touchless airport processes a reality. This will allow passengers to use their digital identity on their mobile phone whenever they travel at each step in the journey. Passengers will use their biometric identity to check-in, make payments, drop their bag, as well as pass through security, immigration and boarding by simply scanning their face at each step. Key touchpoints will automatically recognize you as a passenger, making steps such as bag drop and boarding effortless.

The two companies will collaborate to develop this ground-breaking solution by utilizing both companies’ global presence in the market and the combination of technology for Common Use Platforms and Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions.

With cutting-edge identification technologies and AI solutions including the most accurate face recognition algorithm (*), NEC’s I:Delight platform (**) allows passengers who have opted to use the service to be identified quickly and with a high-degree of accuracy, even when passengers are on the move. SITA Smart Path and SITA Flex solutions are able to integrate mobile and NEC’s biometric technologies with existing common-use infrastructure and airline applications while delivering a smoother airport journey.

Masakazu Yamashina, Executive Vice President, NEC, said: “NEC is pleased to collaborate with SITA to provide ‘NEC I:Delight,’ which utilizes NEC’s cutting-edge digital identity solutions that capitalize on biometrics technologies to deliver a unified customer experience across a wide range of services.”

Raffie Beroukhim, Chief Experience Officer, NEC Corporation of America, and head of NEC Global Aviation Center of Excellence said: “We look forward to this partnership with SITA and the opportunity to develop and implement the most advanced platforms at airports throughout the world, thereby contributing to the digitization of the airline industry and making travel safer and more enjoyable.”

Barbara Dalibard, CEO of SITA, said: “In NEC we have another strong partner where together we are able to deliver to our airline and airport customers a more seamless, automated journey through the airport. We know that passengers value the benefit of a truly self-service experience. Leveraging SITA’s common-use footprint in more than 460 airports globally and NEC’s award-winning identity management technology, we are well placed to help our customers deliver a truly unique and efficient experience in the airport, particularly during these challenging times where there is increased focus on the health and safety of passengers.”

_{(*) NEC Face Recognition Technology Ranks First in NIST Accuracy Testing
      About NEC’s Face Recognition}

_{(**) About NEC’s I:Delight Identity Management Platform}