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74 INTELLIGENT COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS
exchange the design information. Using STEP, the design and manufacturing
departments can have concurrent engineering by sharing a database. STEP has
been studied under the standardization activities of ISO. Some of them have been
standardized. STEP is completely compatible with IGES. In the future, IGES will
be included in STEP.

7.9 ELECTRONIC MONEY

A special credit card with an embedded integrated circuit (1C) can store informa-
tion about deposits and payments. This is what is called electronic money. One can
deposit funds electronically. For example, salaries can be paid this way. The credit
card is, in a sense, a bank passbook. When we buy goods at a department store with
electronic money, the amount of the purchase is deducted from the balance of
our electronic money account. Salaries are paid into the electronic account. In this
way electronic money functions, in effect, like actual money. With the introduc-
tion of electronic money, the deposit and payment of money will change drasti-
cally from the traditional form.
To establish the electronic money concept requires the development of more
reliable equipment for its manipulation. For example, to make it robust and reli-
able a powerful encryption system has to be established.
The introduction of electronic money will have a significant impact on soci-
ety. Electronic money will play an important role in this century. The credit card
companies, such as VISA International, Inc., and MasterCard International, Inc.,
are conducting trials with electronic money throughout the world.
In February 2001, NTT Communications, Inc., Japan, announced that it had
invented a new type of electronic money, a noncontact type of electronic money
in which asymmetric key encryption is installed. A VISA credit card has to be in-
serted in a machine for a transaction. However, an NTT electronic money trans-
action does not involve inserting the card in a machine. Rather, you show the card
to the machine. NTT Communications was planning to conduct a trial with its
card in 2001 in cooperation with partners such as banks, retailers, and railway
companies.
In contrast, Sony, Inc., in January 2001, established a new company to handle
electronic money, in cooperation with NTT DoCoMo, Toyota Motors, KDDI, Inc.,
Sakura Bank, and others. Machines are installed at convenience stores, where a
customer can transact for noncontact-type electronic money. JR East Japan, Inc.,
was also planning to conduct a trial with Sony electronic money for its commuters
in 2001. Electronic money will surely be put to practical use early in this century.
To accomplish electronic payment, it is very important to be able to transmit
information securely over the Internet, information about the purchase order and
payment information between a customer and a merchant or between a customer
and a credit card company. Secure mechanisms such as Secure Sockets Layer and
Secure Electronic Transaction have been developed and installed in the system.