UPM Raflatac launches a broad product portfolio of Near Field Communication RFID tags

UPM Raflatac is launching a new product portfolio of Near Field Communication (NFC) RFID tags. These products are already in use in several projects, in applications including multifunctional media badges for music, data and movie discs and electronics pairing. The media badge utilizes UPM Raflatac’s BullsEye NFC RFID tags, and is the result of collaborative development between UPM Raflatac, CDA and Master Disc.

With a multifunctional NFC media badge embedded into a disc, it is possible to open hyperlinks, use ticket and payment functions and vote for the latest music hits via a mobile phone, for instance. The media badge also offers a normal optical disc interface for music, pictures and movies, as well as a print surface for barcodes, 2D codes and personalized naming.

In electronics pairing applications, NFC tags are generally used to facilitate recognition between a mother device, such as a mobile phone, and its accessories. The recognition protocol between a device and its accessory means that consumers can pair their devices without a complicated set-up procedure.

“Various NFC applications are already available, and we expect to see more during the coming year. Telecom operators are creating services that enable consumers to use NFC technology as the most efficient way of handling several everyday affairs. At the same time, the number of mobile phones available with built-in NFC readers and encoders, such as the Nokia 6131 NFC and the Nokia 6212 Classic, is growing fast,” says Mikko Nikkanen, Business Development Director, UPM Raflatac, RFID.

“In anticipation of market growth, we have designed our product portfolio in a way that enables us to provide solutions for most tag-based NFC applications today and in the longer term,” Nikkanen concludes.   

UPM Raflatac’s extensive new NFC product offering is available with ICs compliant with NFC Forum Tag types 1, 2 and 4. The most suitable tag type depends on the NFC application in question. UPM Raflatac’s NFC products are available as from December 2008.

MiniTrack NFC
• Coil size 14 x 31 mm (0.55 x 1.22")
• NFC product for toys, electronics pairing, authentication and key chains

BullsEye NFC
• Coil size 35 mm (1.38")
• NFC product for CDs, DVDs, smart posters and asset tagging applications

RaceTrack NFC
• Coil size 45 x 76 mm (1.77 x 2.99")
• NFC product for ID cards, tickets and asset tracking applications

For further information, please contact:
Mr Mikko Nikkanen, Business Development Director, RFID, UPM Raflatac, tel. +1 828 275 5162

About CDA
CDA Datenträger Albrechts GmbH is one of Europe’s largest independent manufacturers of pre-recorded optical storage media. CDA offers a comprehensive service range for CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray Discs  – from authoring, mastering, replication and duplication to individual packaging solutions and logistics for handling complex orders. CDA attaches the greatest importance to the continual further development of its products and the implementation of the latest technologies such as the integration of RFID tags into DVDs and CDs, patent pending. At its headquarters in Germany, CDA employs around 200 people. CDA is active throughout Europe with its own subsidiaries and sales offices and via exclusive partners. Further information is available at www.cda.de.

About Master Disc
Master Disc Oy provides optical media replication, memory card copying and RFID ticketing services in Finland. Further information and contact details are available at www.masterdisc.fi.