Date:15/07/2004 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2004/07/15/stories/2004071505261400.htm

Business

Wipro launches technology concept store

By Our Staff Reporter

Radio frequency identification sensor displayed at Wipro's newly launched technology concept store at its campus in Banglaore on Wednesday. - Photo: G. R. N. Somashekar

BANGALORE, JULY 14. Wipro Technologies, the IT services division of Wipro, has launched a radio frequency identification enabled store at its Electronic City campus, a company release says The concept store demonstrates how item level RFID tagging enables automatic check-out, intelligent shrinkage avoidance, smart stock maintenance and tracing and tracking of apparel by the store manager, the release said.

IT firms here are looking at potentially huge contracts to build software applications for large retailers, to manage data generated by RFID enabled supply chain networks. However, RFID is not without controversy: Some of the biggest retailers in the world, including Wal-Mart and Germany's Metro AG have faced consumer anger over privacy invasion issues.

Both firms actually pulled plans to put tags on items sold in retail such as shirts and trousers, after customers said RFID could be used to study their shopping behaviour without their knowledge. The RFID tag is a little radio frequency chip that can be tracked literally anywhere. The company has set up an `RFID Centre of Excellence,' the company release says.