Given Sam’s pushback, P&G’s retreat from Wal-Mart and the weakened economy resulting in less capital for RFID, we suggested tag volumes would likely be down in the first part of 2009. This past week, Zebra announced it took a $143M charge to impair goodwill associated with its Enterprise Solutions Group acquisitions, mostly related to WhereNet, [...]

We understand that P&G has terminated its RFID display tagging project with Wal-Mart, according to a memo to P&Gs contract manufacturers. Contract manufactures that were applying tags to P&G displays were asked to immediately stop tagging and return readers and associated equipment back to P&G. While P&G appeared to be getting good insight from the [...]

Key take away’s from the most recent set of company earnings reports are that cash preservation is the top priority and inventories are too high. We view this as meaningful information for the RFID industry. With respect to cash preservation, as we have indicated in the past, unless projects have less than a six month [...]

Chris Paget, an electronics hacker, demonstrated his ability to collect the serial numbers from passport cards and electronic driver’s licenses issued in conjunction with the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) as he drove his car around downtown San Francisco. WHTI cards use Gen 2 tags. Paget used a Motorola XR400 reader with one antenna and [...]

Members of the European BRIDGE project provided an overview of its EU BRIDGE WP6 Pharma Traceability Pilot, which began in May 2006 and will be completed in June 2009. The project tracked item level goods in a live supply chain and seems to have provided two key insights, mass serialization in Pharma makes good sense [...]

Australia’s Communication and Media Authority (ACMA) will now allow up to 4 Watt Effective Isotropic Radiated Power (EIRP) for RFID devices operating between 920MHz-926MHz. Previously, the ACMA limited the use of RFID to 1 Watt of power between 918MHz-926MHz under a Low Interference Potential Devices (LPID) class license. GS1 had been issued a scientific license [...]

Intermec reported revenue of $221.5M (-13%). GAAP EPS was $0.15 versus $0.24 last year. Given an outlook for lower direct business, some delays in channel business and weaker leverage, management provided reduced guidance versus expectations, which is consistent with our most recent reseller surveys. Intermec guided 1Q09 revenue down 20%-30% sequentially; normal seasonality is down [...]

Neology announced it has won a $40M contract for electronic vehicle registration in Mexico. This includes Gen 2 based windshield tags that will be deployed over the next three years. We understand that reader infrastructrue will move forward on a state-by-state basis, and that the total opportunity for readers as well as back end systems and software could be [...]

AeroScout announced In Motion Technology will provide to its customers a solution that leverages AeroScout’s active technology to create a field deployable asset tracking solution. In Motion provides secure in vehicle wireless solutions. With this partnership, a solution would feature a vehicle with a reader connected to In Motions wireless solution allowing the tracking of [...]

The British reality show 2009 Celebrity Big Brother will use active RFID track the movements of housemates to augment the existing 24 hour camera coverage. The system is designed to monitor individual locations, and with whom those individuals are associating, providing a tool for program psychologists to assess behavior. It also enables the show to [...]