Aug 14, 2014The following are news announcements made during the past week by the following organizations:
Epicurious, Swirl Networks;
InvoTech, Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park;
iZipline, HID Global.
Epicurious to Use Swirl Beacons to Deliver Localized Services to In-Store Shoppers
In-store mobile marketing company Swirl Networks has announced a partnership with Epicurious, a Condé Nast online and mobile service focused food. The two companies say they plan to bring exclusive in-store digital experiences to Epicurious' audience. Swirl's marketing platform leverages Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons to deliver targeted content and offers to consumers' smartphones, based on their specific location and behavior at the store.
According to Swirl, its beacons installed in retail shopping locations throughout North America will be used to trigger the delivery of value-added lifestyle content and personalized offers to more than 9 million Epicurious mobile app users. Available now, the in-store digital experiences are offered to users of the Epicurious iPhone app who have opted-in to receiving local content. These in-store experiences are being tested in select markets, where Epicurious mobile app users will receive culinary and lifestyle content and offers while they shop, according to Swirl, which said it was not at liberty to provide any more details, including the retail locations or markets.
Thanks to the beacons, Epicurious will make everyday shopping experiences more rewarding by delivering our high-quality lifestyle tips, ideas and content directly to consumers at the very moment decisions are being made, according to Carolyn Kremins, Epicurious' senior VP and general manager. The Swirl platform helps deliver these experiences in contextual and relevant ways while consumers shop, giving Epicurious new opportunities to create additional value for both its consumers and its advertising partners. Swirl has previously announced retail store beacon deployments at Lord & Taylor, Hudson's Bay (see RFID News Roundup: Hudson's Bay and Lord & Taylor Stores Roll Out Swirl's Beacons), Alex and Ani (see Alex and Ani Rolls Out Swirl's Bluetooth Beacons at 40 Stores), Timberland, and Kenneth Cole stores across North America.
Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park Adopts InvoTech Uniform-Tracking System
InvoTech Systems has announced that Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park in northeastern Ohio has implemented InvoTech's ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID-based system to automate control and management of the property's 6,000-plus uniforms. A 200,000 square-foot gaming and entertainment destination, Hard Rock Rocksino opened in December 2013 and features video lottery terminals (VLTs), entertainment venues, four dining options, and harness racing.
The uniform tracking system leverages Fujitsu Frontech North America's rubber-encapsulated EPC Gen 2 UHF RFID labels that are attached to the property's uniforms during initial staff garment fittings. Each tag has a unique ID number linked to data about the item's particular type, as well laundering history. The solution also includes Impinj Speedway Revolution R420 readers and the Times-7 UHF-RFID and Laird Technologies reader antennas. InvoTech integrates the RFID readers and software with White Conveyors' U-Pick-It automated uniform-delivery system that automates uniform distribution to each Rocksino team member. The two systems communicate and record the location of each uniform--if it is in the laundry or has been retrieved by a team member--to maintain a real-time uniform inventory, according to InvoTech. The uniform tracking system also records all uniform use and laundry cycles to forecast replacement requirements for accurate budgeting.
Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park, a gaming, entertainment, and dining destination, has more than 750 staff members. InvoTech says its uniform-management system eliminates costs for unaccounted losses and reduces employee and laundry errors, and that customers like Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park usually see the InvoTech solution pay for itself in the first year.
iZipline to Integrate PackageTagz App With HID Global's Trusted Tag Services
HID Global has announced that iZipline, a provider of Near Field Communication (NFC) technology for consumer product brands, will integrate HID Trusted Tag Services into its cloud-based software platform that enables mobile consumer engagement via NFC technology. HID Global's Trusted Tag Services include HID's trusted tags (see HID Trusted Tag Offers Secure NFC Connection Without App) that feature unique security and privacy attributes that make each tap unclonable, and back-end software and servers that authenticate each trusted tag read before sharing data with an individual's phone or other NFC reading device. The tag's internal software, designed by HID, prompts it to generate a unique URL, as well as a series of trusted additional digits, thereby making every URL unique. The tag then changes that URL the next time it is read, thus serving as a one-time password (OTP). The URL can never be used more than once, making it impossible for someone to share a URL with others who may be located elsewhere.
Initially, trusted tags will be used for authentication of PackageTagz, iZipline's patent-pending NFC application for pouch-packaging designed to provide instant engagement between a brand and a consumer's mobile device for product recalls, track and trace, brand protection, mobile marketing, and related analytics. The PackageTagz system is commercially available now, according to iZipline's CEO, Michelle Moulin. "We are developing a pilot with HID Global for launch this year," she says. "We are not yet at liberty to discuss the product that will feature the secure tags in that pilot."
When integrated into iZipline's platform, HID Trusted Tag Services will enable global brands to authenticate each product's package, protecting both a company's brand and consumers from counterfeit goods while also delivering chain-of-custody benefits, according to HID. Trusted tags will also provide iZipline with secure connections for instant delivery of relevant and timely product content to consumers via their mobile device, the company says.
