Unwired - News About GPS, Wi-Fi, RFID, Bluetooth - May-27-2006 May 26, 2006
Here are some summaries related to wireless technologies (GPS, Wi-Fi, RFID, Bluetooth) for May 27, 2006:
- With the debate still on about illegal immigrant workers in the US, VeriChip Corporation board chairman Scott Silverman has suggest the government use his companies chips. These RFID chips are implanted under the skin. [via spychips.com] Suggestions of tracking human beings, particularly children, with RFID is a topic that is getting the backs up of a lot of people, especially civil libertarians. US President Bush has a “Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative” that includes a special RFID-enabled travel card for North American citizens. This is a replacement for the original of an RFID-enabled passport for Americans who leave the US and need to re-enter at a later date.
- In possibly a first, Parisian citizens can now get their contactless transit fare cards weekly and monthly pass form. These passes are good for buses and trains, and were originally only available as yearly passes. [via Card Technology]
- Two of the largest smartcard vendors are merging next week to form Gemalto. This is the union of European companies Axalto and Gemplus and is prompted by a huge drop in the price of SIMs. Other smartcard vendors have expressed concern about this merger in terms of their own ability to make money on SIM cards. However, this is not the first merger in the industry.
- A number of banks in the US, including Fifth Third Bank, are testing out contactless replacements to MasterCard. Similar MasterCard trials are also being conducted in Europe.
- If you’re looking for RFID job and like to travel, IT megacenter Bangalore, in southern India, has opportunities with American firm Blue Vector, at their new India Center. [via RFID News]
- In part of the largest project of its kind worldwide, states in the northwest part of India started issuing optical-stripe smart driver’s license cards. [via RFID News]. Latvia already started issuing smart driver’s license cards in 2004, using Digimarc Corporation’s security features. Digimarc is also working with the state of Indiana, USA, for a similar card. Other projects around the world have been contemplated for a couple of years now.
While profit margins on RFID tags (microchips) are still tiny, the market for RFID applications is growing. Job opportunities will continue to grow at the application end, if not the chip manufacturing end. However, there is a concern that jobs will be lost by people whose task it is to identify people. This includes airport and border security positions.
Technorati Tags: myglobalcity, my global city, RFID, digital identification, chip implants
- Posted in : Cyborgs, Travel, Global village apps, World events, Digital money, Digital identification, RFID + NFC
- Author :rdash
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Comments»
As demonstrated in your article, India and other developing countries are moving rapidly towards RFID based solutions rather than interim barcode solutions. This is highlighted in the article RFID - Capturing Business Imagination in India