Wal-Mart Opts For Radio Tags
by June 23, 2003 12:00 am 55 views
Microsoft Corp. said on June 10 that it would develop software and services that will help retailers, manufacturers and distributors use radio tags to track and manage goods within stores and factories.
Radio frequency identification, or RFID, technology is gaining ground as a better way to label items ranging from cereal boxes to car parts, since the low-cost tags can be tracked by remote radio receivers, unlike bar codes, which must be visible to be read by laser scanners.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s largest retailer, told its top suppliers in early June to have all their products “chipped” or tagged with RFID modules.
Microsoft said that it would work to make its desktop, server and applications software work with RFID and also develop programs specifically designed to use the new retail tagging technology.