An analysis by Future of Authentication (2021) stated that biometric authentication is the new preferred authentication form for users which combines security & simplicity. However, it is questionable what the future of the biometrics market is. Is this biometric market static or are there new opportunities emerging?
Worldline has conducted an analysis of the biometrics market to answer this question.
Worldline has studied the biometrics market to investigate the different maturity levels present in the market and to situate the overall situation. This work is summarised in the image below:
There is a first half of the analysis focuses on the maturity of in-store biometrics eXperience. In contrast, the second half focuses on the maturity of biometrics on online authentication.
Higher maturity for online biometrics modalities. It is obvious that the market for online biometrics is much more developed; this is explained by the digitalisation of processes, the COVID-19 pandemic, and thus, the increase of e-commerce (+10% in 2021, European e-commerce report).
Nowadays, biometrics is widely used, and this is particularly the case for two modalities: facial recognition et fingerprint. These two factors are highly developed and can easily be used both on a smartphone and a browser to authenticate users thanks to their availability on most of recent personal devices (smartphones, PC, tablets, etc).
Moreover, the emergence of new biometric modalities is observed and requires further development. This is particularly the case for voice biometrics, which is evolved rapidly but still faces many challenges of security and privacy. The two other modalities: Palm & Vein Recognition and Device Behavioural biometry, are still at an earlier stage of development with lots of promises as continuous behavioural biometrics might represent a good trade-off between security and user experience.
Although the online biometrics market appears to be more developed and mature, innovative factors are still emerging. We can observe that the online biometrics market and Worldline’s maturity in biometrics technology are in line.
At Worldline, one solution is at the heart of online authentication : WL Trusted Authentication. This solution provides a frictionless and multi-device Strong Customer Authentication solution with biometrics authentication factors.
A less advanced development for the in-store biometrics market. In-store, the most common way to authenticate is with a PIN code. As a result, depending on region, the biometric modalities available in shops are much less developed. However, with the global evolution of biometric technologies, new-end-users habits and wallet payment boom, we can easily imagine that in a decade, this way of consumption will change for biometrics authentication and a dematerialised credit card.
We can already see some biometrics starting to emerge, and this is notably the case for fingerprint, facial recognition and palm recognition. Nevertheless, these factors are developed to meet specific use cases. For example, facial recognition is being developed to make Click & Collect easier, Palm recognition to validate and consent payment and fingerprint is being developed for biometric cards. To meet this growth rate for in-store biometrics, Worldline is exploring in-store biometric.
The emergence of XRs. The different types of XR (virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality) are emerging and the development of the gaming & Metaverse will influence the biometrics market. Indeed, many evolutions are underway. Soon, thanks to a virtual reality headset for example, we can buy products in virtual worlds.
The question is : how to have an immersive authentication in XRs? Biometrics is still the solution, different modalities can be combined: iris and voice recognition, behavioural biometrics, hand recognition and so on. XRs expand the possibilities of biometrics market.
In conclusion, the biometrics market is still evolving and new opportunities are emerging especially in the in-store sector and XRs. Worldline will be present to provide biometric solutions that simplify the user experience without sacrificing security.
