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Micronas First to License IDEA Encryption Algorithm from MediaCrypt for Protection of Digital Content in Consumer Applications Market (0323)

- Trade News | 0323

Targets Consumer Electronics Industry's Need for Strong and Proven Encryption Solution

Freiburg, Germany; Zurich, Switzerland - October 10, 2003 - MediaCrypt AG and Micronas GmbH announced today that Micronas is the first semiconductor manufacturer focused on the consumer electronics industry to license IDEATM (International Data Encryption Algorithm). This enlarges Micronas' current intellectual property (IP) portfolio in the field of digital media and further emphasizes the company's commitment to protecting copyrighted works and helping to fight against piracy.

Today, many of the newest media equipment on the market are technically unable to control the production of illegal copies of digital content. Therefore, in order to protect intellectual property, content needs to be encrypted. One of the world's strongest encryption systems, IDEA, offers an easy and proven implementation of such digital content security for chip manufacturers. The early licensing of the system allows Micronas to act faster on changing customer and market requirements.

"At Micronas we saw this need for protecting legal rights early on. IDEA is part of the solution that allows us to protect copyrighted content," said Reinhard Steffens, director of principal research at Micronas. "In fact our company has always participated in standardization activities and supported industry initiatives such as SmartRighTM, while implementing the respective security arrangements in our products. With the licensing of IDEA from MediaCrypt, Micronas has expanded its data security portfolio with one of the most proven secure and known encryption algorithms."

IDEA offers a vast improvement over commonly used security programs that implement the DES standard (an algorithm limited by a 56-Bit key). IDEA has a key length of 128-Bits, thereby dramatically increasing security. IDEA is used worldwide by military and government organizations, as well as financial institutions, and telecommunications industries - by more than 80 partners worldwide. Additionally, IDEA offers a series of advantages based on its mathematical structure: it encrypts and decrypts faster than other algorithms and due to its standardized interfaces can easily be implemented in existing products.

"Micronas' decision to integrate IDEA on its chips for the consumer electronics industry confirms our market view: digital rights management and general content protection for that matter, are very important," noted Richard Straub, CEO of MediaCrypt. "IDEA is recognized as being strong, small and fast. This accounts for why IDEA can be easily adapted to future requirements and can thus meet the expectations of this promising market." In addition to licensing and supporting IDEA, MediaCrypt also specializes in advanced cryptographic research and development efforts.

About MediaCrypt AG

MediaCrypt develops and licenses encryption algorithm software, based on Ascom's International Data Encryption Algorithm (IDEA). IDEA has been widely recognized and accepted as a vital business component in highly secure encryption systems, since its debut in 1991. The company services hundreds of customer applications and millions of users worldwide. Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, MediaCrypt targets markets that are involved in the convergence of Internet, Multimedia, Entertainment and Wireless Communications. Primary customer segmentations include content and copyright protection solutions like Conditional Access and Digital Rights Management (DRM), as well as manufacturing building components for trusted devices for the digital home. The company is owned equally by its two Swiss founders, Ascom (ASCN: SWX) and the Kudelski Group (KUD: SWX). For more information, please see www.mediacrypt.com

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