Maybe this thread is in the wrong place or doesn’t belong here, but I’ll give it a try.
Is it possible to add VivoKey apps to my existing Fidesmo product?
As I understood it, Fidesmo provides the service for distributing VivoKey apps, right?
Basically you are correct about the Fidesmo platform… but they suffered from a bit of split personality and indecisiveness when it came to what they wanted their platform to be. Early on the idea was that we could distribute apps to any Fidesmo device and they would act as a kind of app store which would allow us to license (sell) for a cheap fee apps for other non-vivokey devices. They dropped that capability, so now we are limiting access to these apps to only our own devices.
That’s said, we are going to explore options with Fidesmo to allow applet licensing outside their platform using a distributor model… but there is no timeline for this at the moment.
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That’s a shame. Regarding app implementation, how does it work if I create a developer account? Would that allow me to bypass certain limitations?
If you were to get a development account with Fidesmo you could deploy applets using a manual service delivery process.
What is the best way to contact Fidesmo to obtain a developer account for implementing my own services?
I would be willing to pay a fee to access apps from VivoKey.
I’m not sure how Fidesmo is onboarding developers at the moment. They might require an OEM contract which is expensive.
I’m talking with Fidesmo now about cross device licensing. I’ll have more information in a week or two. What device do you have and which apps are you interested in?
I have both a watchband from Tapster. It would be most interesting to be able to implement secure data storage, such as a backup for cryptocurrency wallets and OTP, and similar features. But I also have a tag from Fidesmo.
I have a NExT implant, but as I understand it, it’s not as secure for storing that kind of data on it.
There are a few issues we are working through with Fidesmo regarding cryptocurrency applications on chip… might be a while before those are available for licensing on devices that offer emv payment.
Okay, I’ve sent an email to Fidesmo and I’m trying to get a developer account. That way, I should at least be able to implement PGP. I tried their old solution, but it seems they no longer support it.
As I understand it, there are many possibilities with the chip. It’s a shame that Fidesmo has chosen not to further develop it to use the solution for multiple purposes.
Any updates on this?
At this time basically we, VivoKey, will simply work with you to get your open source application published under VivoKey so it can be deployed to Apex devices. This is basically how the Satochip crypto wallet apps came about for Apex.
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FWIW - My experience with getting a new developer account with them has taken a long time.
It started with an email to their support team which created a ticket. There was a canned reply within a day or two asking about what kind of apps I was developing, what the market would be, and if I was interested in working with Fidesmo to offer them commercially.
After I replied, it took a few weeks or so of some back-and-forth of “hey, any updates to my developer request” type emails. They eventually had me schedule a call with someone on their sales team. The call was good. I basically explained that any applets I made would likely just be for DT implants and offered for free or at a low cost, but that I would be happy to have a more commercial presence if the Apex chips became widely adopted. The sales guy said that was fine, and said he would approve developer access and that the development team would reach back out
My ticket was closed after that but I never had any follow up and I kind of forgot about it since I found some cheap P71 chips that can work as a stand-in for development.
If/when I do get a working applet, I’ll test on P71 cards and/or a FlexSecure, then contact Fidesmo again about devloper access (and/or reach out to Amal). Seems like the path of least resistence for now.
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As the resident Vivokey applet person I’d be happy to help bring your applets into the Vivokey/Fidesmo ecosystem if you (and @amal) want that and the applets proves to be useful.
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I had a very similar experience with Fidesmo: basically had the same conversations, was given an informal green light, but never received an official onboarding.
Bit meh, to be honest, nut what can you do 
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