[Nick Danger]

Most of the stores are collecting terabytes of this data, but it's just sitting there because there's no budget to do anything with it

The kind of stuff described in this article is all very possible, and it's the subject of endless proposals from vendors, but the grocery chains are wary of spending any more money in this area because the previous promises haven't come true.

These 'loyalty card programs' are an advantage for the first mover, but once everybody has it, it's no longer an advantage and it just costs money.

[Billy_bob_bob]

It's what I refer to as "the paradox of the room with a trillion keys". Picture yourself in a concrete vault. There is only one door to get out, and its locked, and you cannot break it down. You're screwed. In a similar fashion, picture yourself in a concrete vault. It's the size of the Superdome inside of there, and you are hip-deep in keys. Only one of them opens the door. I submit that you are just as screwed as you were in the first example.

Too much data can be as useless as no data at all. Worse yet, you'll drive youself mad in the second example, trying out all of the keys you can get your hands on!

[CDHart]

We have the special cards for one of our grocery stores here in a rural area. I don't understand what all the fuss is about, though. You don't show ID to get the card. You could give them a fake name and address, and still get the card. Their prices are high and the card just brings them down to a realistic level. They have no more clue who I am than the man in the moon.

Carolyn