A visionary

Oracle joins the Java Card Forum to greet the memory of Bertrand du Castel.

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From its inception, he was the outspoken champion of the Java Card platform [...] his vision extended beyond the technical. He recognized that we all live in the progression of history; and, he had a knack for recognizing episodes of historic importance, from the profound to the seemingly mundane.

In the mid-1990’s, Bertrand was selected to lead a new project to develop a “post-issuance, programmable” smart card.

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As it emerged that ultimate success would require all smart card competitors to have access to the new non-proprietary technology licensed from Sun Microsystems, Bertrand understood that the industry as a whole had to work together, and in close concert with Sun Microsystems.

So, in a truly prescient move, just days after the first Java Card was produced by Schlumberger, the Java Card Forum was formed on 12th February 1997. Bertrand served as the Chair of the Technical Committee and was instrumental in driving forward each new version of the Java Card platform specification: 2.1 in 1999 (interoperable file format), 2.2.2 in 2006 (ETSI and contactless).

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In 2005, Bertrand’s contribution to the smart card industry was formally recognised when Card Technology Magazine (the main publication of the smart card industry in its day) named him Visionary of the Year and ran a major article about his work.

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The Java Card Forum created the “Bertrand” Award - in memory of the late Bertrand du Castel and awarded to the person demonstrating the most significant contribution to Java Card technology.

Please find the complete tribute to Bertrand du Castel on the Java Card Forum website.