Wal-Mart to forgo tracking chips

The Washington Times ^ | 07/18/03 | Chris Baker

[CFW]

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will not track inventory by selling products tagged with tiny computer chips, a technology that one day could allow retailers to "follow" merchandise from the store shelf into a customer's home.

Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, and Gillette Co., the world's largest shaving-supplies maker, had planned to conduct a "smart shelf" trial at a Wal-Mart store in Brockton, Mass., this summer.

[elbucko]

Gillette is testing the technology in Europe, and it wants to wait until it has completed those trials, Eric A. Kraus said.

"We're trying to gather as much information as possible on the viability of this technology," Mr. Kaus said.

Gillette is testing in Europe where it fears no privacy laws until it can get the technology undetectable for the US. Gillette stockholders would be better served if management was putting resources into better shaving devices than snooping in its customers bathrooms.

As for Wal-Mart, I'm not surprised. It's like "Oceania" in there and Big Brother is watching.

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[Catspaw]

Here's yet another reason NOT to shop at Walmart: a good friend of mine was at Walmart East in Green Bay yesterday picking up a few things. She wanted to buy two packs of cigarettes. The clerk demanded ID. She's 60. Yes, it's been 48 years since she was a minor & the clerk wanted ID (would an AARP card been sufficient?). She was so PO'ed, she left her purchases at the counter & walked out of the store. She's vowed never to darken their door again.

[FLAUSA]

Something is wrong here! Tracking inventory is not that hard and can be accomplished rather easily using current methods. The UPC codes on the products are scanned at the checkout, which does a couple of things. First, it provides the clerk with the proper price but even more importantly it allows a company to know in real time what invetory is on hand and where it is. At the end of the day, a Wal-Mart warehouse packages and ships more merchandice to each Wal-Mart store in it's area with the proper amount and assortment to replentish what was sold.

Now what happens when something is not sold but stolen? Guess what? Thieves don't check out and have their stolen goods scanned so no one knows they're gone except the thief. The shortfall is not discovered until a physical inventory is conducted, actually going out and counting the goods on the shelves.

Now with this new technology, the store would be able to automatically find out how many widgets were on the shelf, but more importantly, they could find a large quanity of widgets that were in somebody's car or in somebody's home.

Great for loss prevention. Bad for privacy.

[Libertarianize the GOP]

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[Prof Engineer]

Wal-Mart to forgo tracking chips

They may have cancelled that particular test.

Wal-Mart is actively romancing a company in Richardson, TX called RFSAW which is deeply involved in devolping this type of stuff.

[elbucko]

Now with this new technology, the store would be able to automatically find out how many widgets were on the shelf, but more importantly, they could find a large quantity of widgets that were in somebody's car or in somebody's home.

Not without probable cause and a warrant. Of course the police will consider the "tracking data" as probable cause. But, what happens when the technology (or the LEO's) make a mistake and "bust" an honest citizen and Wal-Mart customer. Good PR, Huh? Do you realy think loss control has priority over customer relations? I don't.

No thanks. Wal-Mart can keep its "widgets" and I'll (try) to keep my privacy. You don't need my personal information to do inventory.

[penemy]

Does ANYONE have a clue???

The VAST majority of these opinions/posters have no clue as to the workings of RFID. Do they think that now Gillete (pty) LTd etc etc or Wal Mart or whoever can track your can of beans into your home? That they can use rfid chips to say "joe bloggs bought 17 cans of this soup"? (which they could do with barcodes anyway....)? As an RFID tecgnology specialist, I WISH!!!! Unless you have a reader, antenna, tracking software and a big link up to the evil, dark lords of big brother (whatever...), there is absolutely no way. All an RFID tag is, is a bar code that can be read without line of sight (i.e. a bar code that could be printed on the INSIDE of the packaging and still be read from any angle). The read range of these things is a few centimetres!!!

People like CASPIAN etc etc really have too much time on their hands.....

penemy

[The Westerner]

"RFID will allow the Wal-Mart warehouse workers to scan a single pallet of products rather than having to count the items individually."

This explains briefly how valuable it will be as a timesaver. Thanks for checking in.

[weegee]

That's okay, there was a Canadian brewery that was running a contest. The winning can was to contain a GPS device so that when it was opened, a prize claim team could be sent to the winner's location.

[bets]

Wal-Mart to forgo tracking chips

ya - right