Contactless Biometrics Technology Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Component, By Service (Face, Fingerprint, Iris, Voice, Hand Geometry), By Application, By End Use, By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2020 - 2027

Report Overview

The global contactless biometrics technology market size was valued at USD 6.92 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 20.3% from 2020 to 2027. The technology offers an innovative and much safer mode based on hygiene and convenience, amid the COVID-19 outbreak, which will boost the demand. Furthermore, rising demand for a high level of security in the commercial, public, and private sectors is expected to drive market growth. Growing usage of Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) technology in the e-commerce and retail industry, BFSI sector, border control applications, and increasing support from government legislation to encourage the use of touchless authentication technology is further expected to drive the market growth.

Rising penetration of smartphones and tablets coupled with manufacturers’ focus on facial recognition software for their smartphones as an added layer of verification to unlock their smartphones is anticipated to drive the demand. Contactless biometrics also provides secure access to apps and authenticates payments. Moreover, the rising adoption of contactless biometrics solutions in financial institutions for securing financial transactions worldwide is further expected to drive market growth. Contactless biometrics technology allows longer run times with fewer consumables and less cleaning, which minimizes its maintenance costs.

A growing number of air travelers across the globe has increased the demand for more secured and advanced identification solutions at airport facilities. For instance, in April 2020, Etihad Airways announced a trial of contactless self-service technology manufactured by Elenium Automation. The solutions estimate a passenger’s vital signs, to allow for touchless health screenings through voice recognition at airport kiosks. In addition, manufacturers are also focusing on advancing their existing contactless biometrics solutions by implementing temperature sensors to capture body temperature and imaging cameras.

With the advent of computerized databases and digitization, contactless biometrics verification has a high industrial adoption rate worldwide. Rising demand for secure, hygienic, and convenient authentication systems in condominiums and clubs across the globe is anticipated to drive market growth. For instance, in April 2020, several clubs and condominiums such as Residencial Alphaville Zero, Tamboré 1, and Residencial Alphaville 1, among others in the São Paulo region installed IDEMIA’s MorphoWave Compact, a contactless biometric access control. The access control performs a 3D scan and verification of fingers and offers a hygienic and secure identification experience to the users.

However, the high cost of contactless biometrics solutions is expected to hinder the growth of the contactless biometrics technology market to a certain extent. Furthermore, data theft or identity theft is a major challenge for growth as it may lead to a serious threat to the security of important information or even increase national security threats. Human face changes in texture and shape over time and facial recognition technologies must be robust enough to accommodate changes that are generated from the aging process, which increases error rates in the matching systems. Other factors of error include illumination of the face, variations in pose, and expression that further limit the growth to a certain extent.

COVID-19 Impact Insights

The recent COVID-19 epidemic that prompted a shift towards social distancing is influencing organizations to move from contact-based biometrics technology to contactless biometrics solutions. The pandemic also brought contactless biometrics to broader use for early detection, public safety monitoring, and patient screening. With the rise of this pandemic across the globe, several institutions, governments, and organizations are now focusing on hygiene and a secure way of sustaining personal identities, offering access controls with no physical contact to the users. Governments across the globe have worked up their measures to implement contactless biometrics technology to quickly react to the crisis.

Component Insights

The software segment dominated the market with a share of over 44% in 2019 and is expected to maintain its dominance over the forecast period. Growing adoption of cloud-based services, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Machine Learning (ML) for contactless biometrics solutions are expected to drive the demand for software to strengthen the compatibility of devices for different applications. On the basis of components, the market is segmented into hardware, software, and service. The service segment is further segmented into professional services and managed services.

Growing demand for fast and secure access controls, queue-less passenger checks, seamless border crossing, and fast identification of individuals for better convenience and security is accelerating the market demand. Manufacturers are developing contactless biometric high-tech sensor systems through fast software algorithms and machine-learning methods for fast and secure identity checks. The software also allows users to integrate the latest add-on features by just updating the software/application. Furthermore, various e-commerce companies such as Amazon.com, Inc. are also developing and marketing image recognition software, Amazon Rekognition, for users of the Prime Photos service. The software allows users to detect faces, objects, and scenes to organize and filter their photos.

Application Insights

The iris segment is expected to register significant growth over the forecast period. An iris-based system is accurate, fast, and convenient while eliminating payroll frauds such as buddy punching. The growing demand for iris biometrics technology within an organization to process payroll and calculate other benefits such as disability, health, and vacation is expected to drive the demand for the iris segment.

The growing COVID-19 pandemic across the globe is pushing everyone to minimize physical contact with a common surface. Iris identification provides authentication solutions in national and civil ID programs, access control, and time attendance, among others. Furthermore, increasing adoption of iris technology by state and local agencies for border security is further expected to drive the growth. For instance, in April 2017, El Paso Police Department, U.S. started using biometrics technology which combines iris-scanning, facial recognition, and fingerprint identification capabilities to increase border security.

End-use Insights

Government segment dominated the market in 2019 and is expected to maintain its dominance over the forecast period. Governments across the globe started adopting contactless biometrics technology to minimize and control criminal activities. For instance, in November 2019, National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), India, gathered bids from private companies to develop a centralized facial recognition surveillance system. The new system allowed the police force for criminal identification and verifications process across the country.

The healthcare sector is expected to register considerable growth over the forecast period. The rapid technological advancements and AI-powered face and iris identification systems allow hospital facilities to track patients without using physical tracking devices. Furthermore, the emergence of real-time emotion detection, which is an application of face recognition in healthcare is also gaining popularity. It is used to detect emotions that patients exhibit during their stay in the facility. The data is used to determine how patients are feeling and also helps to identify where the patients need more attention in the case, they’re in pain.

Regional Insights

North America dominated the market with a share of over 30% in 2019. This dominance can be attributed to the presence of technology providers such as nVIAsoft Corporation, HID Global, M2SYS Technology, and BioConnect, in the region. Increasing demand for contactless biometrics solutions by payment solution providers to offer secure transactions to their customers in the region is further expected to drive regional growth. For instance, in October 2019, SnapPay, Inc., a provider of payment solutions, announced the availability of facial recognition-based payment technology for merchants in North America.

The rising adoption of contactless biometrics solutions in defense and government applications is also expected to drive the demand for the market in North America. Furthermore, increasing government initiatives to implement contactless biometrics solutions to deal with an increasing number of travelers and to increase security at airport facilities are expected to drive the regional demand. For instance, in 2018, the Canadian Border Services Agency installed kiosks, which utilize facial recognition technology at airports. The new technology utilized both facial recognition and fingerprint biometrics to facilitate clearance procedures for travelers at airports in Canada.

Key Company and Market Share Insights

The key market players include Touchless Biometric Systems AG; Fingerprint Cards AB; Fujitsu Limited; IDEMIA; and NEC Corporation. Vendors in the market mainly focus on developing and launching new and innovative contactless biometrics products. For instance, in May 2018, Touchless Biometric Systems AG launched TBS 2D EYE, an iris recognition device. The device is used for time and attendance and access control across various industry sectors, such as telecom, BFSI, heavy industries, and logistics.

Furthermore, key players are adopting strategies such as mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and partnerships, with biometrics technology providers to maintain the brand name across the globe. For instance, in June 2017, M2SYS Technology partnered with SecuGen Corporation for the adoption of biometrics solutions through CloudABIS suite. The suite provides a cloud-based, configurable identity management software platform that can be used for data management and rapid prototyping. Some of the prominent players in the contactless biometrics technology market include:

• Touchless Biometric Systems AG

• Fingerprint Cards AB

• IDEMIA

• nViaSoft

• Fujitsu Limited

• NEC Corporation

• Gemalto N.V.

• Aware Inc.

• HID Global

• M2SYS Technology

Contactless Biometrics Technology Market Report Scope

Segments Covered in the Report

This report forecasts revenue growth at global, regional, and country levels and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2016 to 2027. For the purpose of this study, Grand View Research has segmented the global contactless biometrics technology market report based on component, application, end use, and region:

• Component Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Hardware

  • Software

  • Service

    • Professional Services

    • Managed Services

• Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Face

  • Fingerprint

  • Hand Geometry

  • Iris

  • Voice

  • Others

• End-use Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • Government

  • Banking & Finance

  • Consumer Electronics

  • Healthcare

  • Transport & Logistics

  • Defense & Security

  • Others

• Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2027)

  • North America

    • The U.S.

    • Canada

  • Europe

    • The U.K.

    • Germany

  • Asia Pacific

    • China

    • Japan

    • India

  • Latin America

    • Brazil

  • Middle East & Africa (MEA)