Dutch smartcard alert: De Waag, Amsterdam, 6/19 1900 hrs

[t byfield]

Any C'punks and/or interested parties who happen to be in Amsterdam might
want to pay a visit to De Waag this Friday night, ~7pm: AFAIK, the
Chipknip--the electronic cash system tested in Arnhem--is making its public
debut in the restaurant/cafe "In De Waag." It looks like a bad standard,
imo: smartcards storing x<fl50, PIN-card dependent ( -> True Name),
transaction records kept (duration unknown) by the implementing company,
Interpay. If you're interested in the standard ("VIC"?), get in touch with
Interpay: they _have_ released the payment boxes (real cute: an LCD screen,
a green "ja" button and a yellow "?" button), and I've seen a Rabobank
wallet-reader. For now, the cards stay in De Waag. Full rollout should be
about the end of this year.

Ted