Week 4 - Input

            There have been many concerns from retailers regarding theft and yes, this is a problem we need to consider. If consumers were not required to check out at a register, there may be concern that people would not scan all items in their cart. However, with all the great technologies being put out in the world today, there is an input innovation called RFID, Radio Frequency Identification. This technology would be useful because it would help the retailers to not to worry about the theft problem.

            When our company launches the app, we will be working closely with the RFID innovation. RFID is a system which transmits the identity of an object wirelessly using radio waves. It is an automatic identification technology. Once we get this to work, we will be putting RFID tags on every item that are being sold at the retailers. There are two types of RFID tags, passive and active and we will be using the passive tags which are commonly used. It convenient because it does not need battery power and the cost is much cheaper. If someone tries to steal an item or does not scan an item, the RFID scanners will go off before they leave the store.

            There are some disadvantages of RFID chips as well. Because it is still a developing technology, we can not guarantee 100% whether or not it is completely secure. If this is the case, we can always have someone to check their receipt as it appears on the screen of their device before they leave the store. This is done in many places like BJ’s and COSTCO where you need to show a receipt and check the number of items you have purchased. However, this process would be very hectic if someone purchases more than 20 items. I think we need to work on this issue more in depth to find a way to solve it.