BTG announced the decision by the European Patent Office (EPO) to uphold its patent relating to GSM, GPRS and 3G mobile communications. The Patent had been opposed by leading SIM Card manufacturers, following its grant in 1998.

The successful resolution of the patent's validity will mean that BTG is now in a position to actively enforce its global IP rights to this widely used technology.

The technology covered by BTG's patent builds on existing GSM network infrastructures and handsets, providing a more powerful SIM card that can be remotely updated to securely provide administration features and / or value added services over-the-air. The market for these powerful SIM cards is growing rapidly. In 2001 it was estimated that 160 million of these SIM cards were shipped, and industry leaders Schlumberger forecast that 560 million cards are expected to be shipped by network operators over the next two years.

Commenting on the recent Opposition outcome, Anthony V. Lando, Executive Vice President & Director of BTG's Electronics, Engineering & Information Technologies division said, "We are delighted to have successfully defended our rights to this invention, following a lengthy opposition by the major industry leaders. The EPO's decision underlines the strength of the IP and the current widespread use of this technology presents a great business opportunity for BTG."