What makes the technology worth implementing?
—Name withheld
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The importance of radio frequency identification is that it allows computers to automatically capture information about what is going on in the real world, as well as alert managers when something is not going according to plan. Unfortunately, I don’t think there is a CEO at any major technology company anywhere in the world that understands how profoundly important this is.
The computer allowed human beings to do complex calculations far faster than was ever possible before. The personal computer put that power in the hands of every worker. And the Internet connected these machines, enabling another leap in productivity. The next great leap in computing is the ability for computers to understand what is happening in the real world without the need for human involvement. Devices using Wi-Fi, ZigBee and Bluetooth will play a part, but when you talk about connecting trillions of ordinary items to the Internet, RFID is the only technology I see that is viable.
In short, RFID will be as important as the Internet is today, because it will link the digital and real worlds. And just as no one envisioned the many innovations unleashed by the Internet, I don’t think anyone has begun to understand the changes that ubiquitous RFID will bring and the innovations that it will enable.
—Mark Roberti, Founder and Editor, RFID Journal
