Internet of Things market to reach $1.7 trillion by 2020

The global Internet of Things market will grow to $1.7 trillion in 2020 from $655.8 billion in 2014, research firm IDC says, as more devices come online and a bevy of platforms and services grow up around them. The firm predicts that the number of “IoT endpoints,” connected devices such as cars, refrigerators and everything in between, will grow from 10.3 million in 2014 to more than 29.5 million in 2020. Devices, connectivity and IT services are expected to account for the majority of the global IoT market in 2020, with devices alone accounting for 31.8% of the total. Purpose-built platforms, storage, security, application software and “as a service” offerings are expected to capture a greater percentage of revenue as the market matures.

Market Opportunity for RFID Smart Cabinet Systems in Healthcare

Adoption of radio frequency identification (RFID) is increasing in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries, especially in the areas of assets tracking, supply chain management, and inventory management, according to a new report, which provides an overview of the application of radio frequency identification (RFID) in the healthcare industry

-Hospitals are the major end users of RFID smart cabinets, with catheterisation laboratories (cath labs), operating rooms (ORs), and surgical departments being the major application areas. Pharmaceuticals are also employing RFID to prevent counterfeit drugs from entering the supply chain. RFID is also being used in warehouse management. The uptake of RFID smart cabinets, currently medium, is likely to be high over the next - years. The growing need to improve efficiency and outcome in healthcare settings is a major driver for the utilisation of RFID smart cabinets in inventory management and asset tracking of equipment and supplies.

23B NFC chips will ship worldwide in 2020, report says

Manufacturing near field communication (NFC) chips is a good business to be in right now, as contactless mobile payments and the Internet of Things become major themes in technology during the next few years. A new study from Semico Research said 23 billion NFC chips will ship worldwide in 2020. NFC chips generate a short-range radio signal for the secure transmission of sensitive financial and authentication data.

Beacons Bring Visibility to Cleaning Service Staff Work

Lighthouse, an Australian provider of a cloud-based software platform that integrates mobile apps with Bluetooth beacons, has opened an office in the United States in a bid to grow the customer base for its enterprise-based beacon solution. Cleaning and maintenance service provider Spotless is utilizing the system to manage its workers at malls in Australia.

BBVA adds card controls to mobile wallet

Spanish bank BBVA has updated its BBVA Wallet app, allowing customers to use their mobile phone to limit plastic cards for ecommerce or ATM withdrawals, as well as turning cards ‘on’ and ‘off’ at any time. “The new version turns our customers’ smartphones into a remote control to do whatever they want with their cards,” says BBVA’s Mehmet Sezgin.

Internet of Things breathes new life into RFID technology

About a decade or so ago, it was almost impossible to find a tech analyst who wasn't predicting that radio-frequency identification (RFID) would soon change the world. While RFID eventually became a useful tool in retail, logistics, healthcare and a handful of other enterprise sectors, the technology largely lurked in the shadows while other truly transformative concepts, such as social media and streaming entertainment, grabbed the spotlight. Now, with RFID well into its second decade of adoption, the technology's proponents are busily prepping for a second act. Nina Turner, a research manager
 at IDC, notes that while RFID failed to live up to its lofty initial expectations, "its future is far from hopeless."

Charlotte Fire Department adds QR codes for better communication

According to the communication center at the Charlotte Fire Department, there have now been QR codes applied to the field communication cars in order to better be able to connect with people. The benefit that they are hoping to gain from the quick response codes is in connecting with the citizens.

These QR codes allow people to be able to scan the sides of the vehicles in order to discover more about the communications division as well as its rescue units. These scans can be made using virtually any smartphone or tablet that has a free barcode reader app. This type of use of the barcodes has become quite commonplace in marketing, but the cost effectiveness also makes it appealing for other areas, as well.

Amazon Announces Program With Auburn RFID Lab

During the official opening of the RFID Lab at Auburn University last week, Dave Clark, Amazon's senior VP of worldwide operations and customer service, announced that his company was partnering with the lab to conduct research into how radio frequency identification might be integrated into Amazon's existing high-tech fulfillment centers. "We are partnering with the lab to develop new solutions for implementing RFID in our Amazon supply chain, specifically focused on tagging and driving inbound items through our fulfillment process," Clark explained

Google Unveils Android Pay App for NFC Based Mobile Payments

Google aimed the fastest-growing payment market since the launch of Apple pay, on 28th May, 2015 it has unveiled Android Pay app for NFC based mobile payments. The vice president of engineering Dave Burke has unveiled the app during the Google I/O 2015 Keynote. Android Pay is the latest payments scheme, it will work in any phone which has an NFC chip and running with KitKat version of the OS. It will acceptable at around 700,000 US store locations and big-name retailers such as Macy’s, Bloomingdales, McDonald’s and much more.

NXP and Stora Enso Partner to Integrate RFID into Packaging Solutions

NXP Semiconductors and Stora Enso have entered into joint development of intelligent packaging solutions. The development will focus on integrating RFID (Radio frequency identification) into packages for consumer engagement and supply chain purposes.

The collaboration will also focus on brand protection and the development of tamper evidence applications. These solutions will benefit both consumers and brand owners.

By using NXP RFID technology such as near field communication (NFC) and ultra-high frequency (UHF), Stora Enso smart packages can be easily tracked and traced through the entire supply chain providing full end-to-end transparency. The integrated technology is also able to detect if the smart package has been tampered with en route to the consumer and, once in the hands of the consumer, can provide additional information and interaction through (the tap of) an NFC-enabled smart phone. This visibility and insight is critical for brands and major manufacturers to ensure their products are being shipped and handled correctly. For consumers the benefits are two-fold; the smart packaging can verify the authenticity of the product and also provide care, usage and other important information via the NFC-enabled tag.

Asia Pacific banks begin testing HCE mobile payments

Several major banks in the Asia Pacific region have begun piloting NFC mobile payment services based on host card emulation, using an end-to-end, cloud-based payments solution put in place by HCE specialist SimplyTapp in partnership with mobile technology solution provider PromptNow and IT solution services provider TIS.

Besides RFID, will Target take credit for penicillin?

It's great when retailers bring new technology innovations to the market. It's even pretty good when they adapt not-so-new innovations to their processes in ways that help customers and/or the bottom line. What isn't so great is taking credit for a technology that's been around for a while — presumably because it makes for a better news release than saying, "We're finally adopting a technology that's been around for a few decades. Yay us!"

RFID and the Supply Chain: How the Technology Is Increasingly Being Used By Procurement

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is one of the major technologies that will become ubiquitous in the supply chain and is poised to have a dramatic impact. RFID technology has actually been around since the 1970s, but it has only started to have a real effect on the supply chain within the past few years, and its use is expected to increase as a means of tracking goods and assets.

Similar to bar codes, RFID identifies “things.” Bar codes require a laser to read a single item within line of sight of the reader. In contrast, RFID technology uses a “reader” and antenna that produces radio waves to read product identification at a short distance and does not require direct line of sight. There are 2 types of RFID tags – active and passive. Active tags have their own power supply and are therefore larger and more expensive. Passive tags attached to items use the radio waves as a low power source when the reader scans them. They have limited capability compared to their active counterparts, but they are tiny in comparison and a fraction of the cost. Passive tags are rapidly becoming a commodity and they generally only add 20 cents to each item’s overall cost.

Mobey Forum Publishes ‘Snapshot of NFC Mobile Payments’ for Banks

The explosion in near field communication (NFC) mobile payments has gifted banks and financial institutions with a variety of deployment options and, at the same time, made the task of selecting the right route to market more complicated than ever. For this reason, Mobey Forum’s latest white paper, ‘NFC Mobile Payments: An Industry Snapshot’, launched today, aims to provide a one-stop-guide to assist the banking industry in contrasting the options currently available.