(NEW YORK, NY – January 31, 2012) San Francisco International’s Airport Commission confirmed today that CLEAR, the nation’s pre-eminent biometric secure ID program, has been awarded a lease to operate an expedited traveler service at SFO.  This means that travelers can soon pass through security, efficiently and predictably, saving time otherwise spent standing in line.

CLEARmembers will have exclusive access to CLEARlanes at SFO. This means:

• - former members (CLEAR is honoring membership from all prior members) and anyone who joins CLEAR can expect to predictably and reliably make it through security faster – each and every time they fly out of SFO;
• - enhanced security at SFO – since biometric screening takes advantage of cutting edge technology to ensure proper identification of travelers;
• - the creation of new, private sector jobs at SFO, new revenue for SFO, and a way to make the Bay Area even more attractive to tourists and business travelers, providing a boost for the local economy; and
• - more customer service at SFO — In addition to helping its members clear airport security faster, CLEAR attendants also help non-members, providing all travelers with extra assistance.

“There’s the gift of money.  The gift of love.  The gift of compassion.  But today, San Francisco International Airport (SFO) gave travelers perhaps something even better – the gift of time,” said CLEAR CEO Caryn Seidman-Becker.

“This is a really exciting day for anyone who travels out of San Francisco.  Imagine a world where, rather than having to get to the airport extra early, worrying about how long the line at security will be, and worrying about missing your flight, you know – with certainty and predictability – that if you’re a member of CLEAR, you can clear airport security faster.  That’s exactly what’s happening thanks to the vision and leadership of San Francisco International Airport.  They care about serving their customers, and with decisions like today’s, it really shows.”

Since its re-launch in November 2010, the CLEARlanes at Denver International Airport and Orlando International Airport have been used more than 450,000 times.  CLEAR has a base of some 200,000 legacy members across the U.S., including about 40,000 in San Francisco.

CLEAR membership costs $179 for one year with unlimited use.  Members can add their spouse or significant other to their account with the Family Plan for an additional $50.  All children under 18 can use the CLEARlane free of charge, and with no enrollment, necessary, when accompanied by an adult member.

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About CLEAR


CLEAR is the first and only biometric-based secure identification program for airport security.  CLEAR is a customer-centric company delivering speed, predictability, and service at the airport while enhancing airport security.  For more information on CLEAR, go to www.CLEARme.com, or visit Facebook at www.Facebook.com/CLEARme and Twitter at www.twitter.com/CLEAR_me.

For more information, contact:
Gareth Edmondson-Jones
CLEAR
212-223-5030
917 399-9355

CLEAR is coming to SFO!

We’ve gotten a lot of excitement and questions from you about SFO…

CLEAR was identified as the successful proposer! We are now working with the airport and will have more details and launch timing after formal approval by their Commission.

We’re working hard to speed our members– including 40,000 in the Bay Area– through as many airports as possible…these discussions can take a while, but we’ve got even more good news coming soon.

It costs $179 a year to join, which might sound steep if you’re not a road warrior, but there’s a discount rate of $50; for family members and no charge at all for children 18 and under. It works like this: You sign up online, then present an ID and get your fingerprints taken at one of the enrollment centers where Clear operates. At that point, you get a card that essentially gets you right through security with no wait (you still have go through the metal detector and bag check, of course).

Nice piece by Barbara Peterson on CLEAR in the Daily Traveler on Conde Nast Traveler.

http://www.cntraveler.com/daily-traveler/2011/11/how-to-jump-the-line-at-airport-security

CLEAR, the biometric secure ID program, which speeds its members through airport security, is seeking to become the Official Sponsor of Daylight Savings Time.

The company is rolling out a broad, multi-media campaign to remind its 200,000 frequent traveler members to plan ahead for November 6, when the clocks are turned back one hour to mark the end of daylight savings time.  CLEAR is also offering timely incentives for new members to try the program free and join at a discounted rate.

“Our members tell us that being a CLEARmember saves them so much time that it’s like having Daylight Savings time all year round,” said CLEAR CEO Caryn Seidman-Becker. “That gave us the idea to let non-members try CLEAR for free so they can experience for themselves what a time saver it is.”

New members can sign up for their free trial and $25 discount off their annual membership at CLEARme.com.

CLEAR is running online advertising nationally to support the campaign along with newspaper and out-of-home advertising in its Denver and Orlando markets, and introduced a new blog featuring advice for wellness on the road and how to save more time in your day.

Since the company relaunched operations in November 2010, more than 325,000 travelers have used the exclusive CLEARlanes in Denver and Orlando.

Alclear Gains Sign-ups, but Still Stuck in Two Airports

By: Ed Sealover, Denver Business Journal

Nine months after new owners re-started the Clear pass lane at Denver International Airport, they’re seeing a higher number of customers than expected — but also slower expansion to other airports than they’d forecast.

The Clear pass, offered by Alclear LLC of New York, allows customers to pay a $179 yearly fee to use a designated check-in lane at the Denver and Orlando, Fla., airports.

Alclear records members’ retinal scans and fingerprints on a biometric card that fliers present to airport security. The fliers still must have their carry-on bags and themselves inspected like all others getting onto a plane, but they use a shorter line.

Read the full Denver Business Journal article here: http://www.bizjournals.com/denver/print-edition/2011/08/19/alclear-gains-sign-ups-but-still.html?page=all

By: Craig Kotilinek of Islands Magazine

Security lines down to a science, but time sponging checkpoints are unavoidable. Get where you’re going a little faster with James Bond-like iris scans. Find this extra layer of security on passes like CLEAR card, which now store not only fingerprint information but eye pattern info as well.

To read more from this issue of Islands Magazine go to: http://www.islands.com/

By: A.B from The Economist

YOU MAY remember CLEAR from its earlier incarnation, before bankruptcy forced its closure in June 2009. The company, which specialises in biometric identity verification for airline passengers, rose again in November 2010 under new management, and is in operation at Denver and Orlando airports. At a time when “risk-based screening” (the use of intelligence and behaviour assessment to give each passenger a tailor-made security screening) is on the agenda after the decision of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to roll out a test programme in the autumn, CLEAR’s modus operandi is worth an examination.

Check out the full article in The Economist here: http://www.economist.com/node/21525570

That Chat at the Airport Is Anything but Idle

By: Joe Sharkey, New York Times

THE older I get, the longer the list of people I don’t want to talk to. So let’s just say that I made note of recent comments by John S. Pistole, the head of the Transportation Security Administration, that his agency planned to “upgrade” an existing program in which security officers engage selected passengers in conversation near airport checkpoints.

Mr. Pistole said that expanding the so-called behavior detection program now in place at 161 airports would allow officers to “have more interaction” with more passengers. The idea, loosely based on well-known Israeli aviation security procedures, is that trained agents try to detect behavioral signs indicating potential threats.

For more information, check out the full article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/02/business/agency-expands-behavior-detection-to-spot-airport-threats.html?_r=2&ref=business

By Joe Myxter, Travel editor for MSNBC

Starting this fall, long airport security lines could be a thing of the past for some eligible frequent travelers.

The Transportation Security Administration on Thursday outlined plans to roll out a pilot system in coming months that would allow select air travelers to qualify for expedited screening.

Initially, only Delta Air Lines passengers flying through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International and Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County airports and American Airlines passengers traveling through Miami International and Dallas Fort Worth International airports will be eligible. Some members of U.S. “trusted traveler” programs — Global Entry, SENTRI and NEXUS — will also be eligible.

For more information, Check out the full MSNBC article here: http://overheadbin.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/07/14/7083903-faster-security-screening-soon-a-reality-for-some-fliers

Buying your Way Past the First Security Line

By: Josh Noel,Tribune newspapers

The security line at Orlando International Airport was a mess when I last flew out of there. Even having preferred status on my airline of choice wasn’t getting me through the line any faster.

Yet as I waited (and waited) I noticed a blue and white security kiosk with a single guard — and no line. A woman walked up, flashed her identification, extended a finger to have her fingerprint read and was sent on to the Transportation Security Administration screener. She skipped the 15 or 20 minutes in line the rest of us endured.

Check out the full Chicago Tribune article here: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-02-08/travel/sc-trav-0208-business-class-20110208_1_airport-security-transportation-security-administration-screener-biometrics