With the purchase of a major supplier of fixed and handheld RFID readers, Zebra will now be one of the world's largest providers of RFID hardware, including printers, encoders and readers, as well as software.
The tag, which has a built-in GPS receiver, will be offered in consumer and enterprise versions, enabling users to identify a tag's location via an Iotera RFID reader and a hosted application.
If every digital camera contained a SIM or RFID module, it could log into its manufacturer's product-authentication database when switched on and, if stolen, report its whereabouts and disable itself until returned to its rightful owner.
An interim report argues that the network linking the virtual and the physical worlds should make use of all automatic identification and data capture technologies, as well as other sensor and communication technologies.
The Auto-ID Center Executive Director's vision of an open system for tracking goods with low-cost RFID tags will have an effect on nearly everyone someday.