PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The 2012 CARTES Exhibition & Conference (formerly "CARTES et IDentification") will take place at Paris-Nord Villepinte exhibition centre between 6 and 8 November 2012. This year, 2 major themes explored at the show will be mobile payment and security in the Cloud, and the special guest country will be India. We already have a number of important dates for your diaries, including a round table on interconnected commerce and payment in all its forms (physical, electronic and mobile) in June, the SESAMES Awards Ceremony in November on the eve of the show opening and the World Card Summit inaugural conference on 6 November.

CARTES is the world's leading Smart Technologies event dedicated to security, payment, identification and mobility. Each year, it brings together 430 exhibitors, 79% of whom come from outside France, 20,000 visitors and 1,300 congress participants to explore the industry's latest trends and innovations.

CARTES 2012 – 2 key themes chosen in response to current industry challenges

Mobile Payment

2011 saw strong growth in smartphone use, with a significant increase in the popularity of mobile banking applications and an unprecedented number of initiatives in the mobile payments field. However, there are numerous challenges still to be faced if such systems are to spread further, and close collaboration between players in a wide variety of fields (banks, telephone operators, telephone and payment terminal manufacturers, service suppliers and aggregators and merchants) is essential. This is why CARTES 2012 has chosen to feature the theme of mobile payment once again, hosting all stakeholders involved in this area. The "Mobile Payment" pavilion will be specifically dedicated to them.

Security in the Cloud

Security will be Cloud Computing's number 1 priority in 2012. The exponential growth of "Cloud" services and the proliferation of connected portable devices are an excellent reason, now more than ever, to revisit the confidence, security and interoperability issues relating to increasingly mobile access to data, applications and services in the Cloud. CARTES 2012 will therefore be putting the emphasis on Security in the Cloud, which is set to be a major issue over the coming years. Companies involved in the Smart Security Industry and IT Security, their suppliers and their partners will exhibit side by side in the Show's new sector dedicated to "Security in the Cloud."

"Mobile Payment and Security in the Cloud are two of the major challenges facing Smart Technologies, and authentication in particular, over the next five years. As CARTES is the industry's key event in terms of trends and innovative technological solutions, it was obvious to us that these fundamental developments had to take a central role at the event," explains Isabelle Alfano, Director of the CARTES show.

Special guest country: India

India offers considerable development potential for digital security technologies with its major national financial inclusion and biometric identification projects, and has consequently been chosen as CARTES 2012's special guest country.

An Indian pavilion, visitor delegations and conference speakers will bring developments in the country to the fore during CARTES 2012.

Isabelle Alfano, Director of the CARTES show, will be delighted to answer any questions you may have.

Please do not hesitate to get in touch!

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About CARTES 2012:

The Cartes 2012 Show will be held at the Paris-Nord Villepinte exhibition centre between 6 and 8 November 2012. It is the leading smart technologies event covering security, payment, identification and mobility.

With 143 countries represented, 430 exhibitors and 140 conferences led by international experts, CARTES is the key event for all those involved in this extremely dynamic market. This year, for the 27th edition, the CARTES & IDentification show has chosen India as its special guest country.