by 
EL SEGUNDO, CA — After years of development, China’s radio-frequency identification (RFID) semiconductor market is set to achieve prodigious size and growth during the next few years, with revenue set to more than double from 2009 to 2014, according to the China market research firm iSuppli, now part of IHS Inc. (NYSE: IHS).
The RFID market is poised to grow to $1.4 billion in 2010, up from $1.1 billion in 2009 or an increase of 22 percent. But this pales in comparison to the growth projected for the next few years. By 2014, the RFID market will reach $2.4 billion—more than double the total from 2009.
RFID employs radio waves to transfer data between a reader and an electronic tag attached to an object, allowing easy identification and tracking. Regarded by many as the successor to the ubiquitous universal product code (UPC) barcode system, RFID provides several advantages compared to UPC in logistical applications, such as eliminating the need for contact or line of sight in order to conduct the transfer of identification or tracking information.
The rise of China’s RFID market is the result of rising demand from applications in transportation, warehouse logistics, electronic payment, medical equipment tracking, food security systems, asset management and more.
At the same time, technology integration in the RFID market has been advancing. Many enterprises have begun to study technical innovations designed to broaden the applications for RFID devices, including mobile payment.
Cost Barrier
The cost of RFID remains a barrier to its acceptance, despite the technology’s many advantages compared to UPC. But thanks to the rapid development of integrated circuit manufacturing technology, RFID chip costs are continuing to decline, with the price for many Chinese high-frequency RFID cards now down to about one yuan Prices of tagged products are even cheaper and also are expected to drop further. iSuppli forecasts that as the technology matures, so will manufacturing of the devices, which will allow the devices to reach economies of scale. Red Tags
In 2010, the dramatic decrease of second-generation RFID shipments resulted in a sharp decline in tag sales, with the sales of readers surpassing those of tags to date. Thanks to the Shanghai Expo and Guangzhou Asian Games, however, the two projects have managed to account for 48 percent of the entire market.
Overall, China’s RFID industry will be driven by the Chinese government’s extensive investments in the so-called Internet of Things, which forms part of the country’s Twelfth Five-Year Plan. And though the RFID ecosystem is not yet mature in areas pertaining to standards, costs and suppliers, iSuppli believes the industry will develop quickly in the next four years.
RFID tags seems to have gone out of discussion nowadays. In the supply chain context RFID tags assume a significant importance. I am interested to know what is the status of the usage of this technology in the developed countries like USA, Europian countries. Is this technology poised to replace those bar codes universally? So far as my experience in India is concerned I have yet to see a RFID enabled warehouse.
Not too sure about the rest of the world, but RFID id is big in Hong Kong , staff ID cards product identification etc.
You can pick up a 13.56MHZ rfid reader/writer in China for about 15$us the 125khz readeres/writers are even cheaper.
So really it is not the technology of readrers/writers holding things up, I guess it needs to hit a break over point , the manufacturers don't want to add cost to the product and complicate their current supply chain with the equipment needed, and the resellers etc don't want to buy the equipment because RFID is not fully implemented yet.
Once it hits a break over point there will be a massive rush to get the technology fully implemented, It reminds me of the Security stickers to prevent shoplifting, that seemed to go through the same curve, now some big retailers insist that all products supplied above a certain market value come pre processed from the suppliers with the correct tags for thier RF security systems.
Used to be the Retailers did the attaching of the tags
Thanks Hardcore for providing this information. Regarding the pricing you have mentionsed that a reader/writer set cost around US$ 15. Can you tell me what is the cost of the tag itself. If the tag cost is minimal then a warehouse can easily afford to implemnt a RFID based inventory tracking system.
Hi,
The cost of the tag varies on the enclosing medium and the functionality, IE the embedded memory of the tag. Prices are still being quoted over 50 cents for volume.
But I'm having a hard time believing some of the costs associated with the tags, there seems to be some significant resistance to price decrease (which is only natural, since no one is going to get rich if the cost is a few cents for each tag)
The key is going to be the China market, I'm starting to see embedded tags appearing on more 'high value' products. Used to be they would pay staff to follow you around, but that is very much reduced now in stores where tags are being used.
Currently they seem to be attaching 'reusable' tags onto product over 40RMB, more for security than for actual data collection, it just seems an 'odd' way to implement security, unless it is a combined tag with an RF security antenna AND an RFID tag, in some cases it appear the 'market' for tags is not smart enough yet to decide on the equipment they are installing and for what purpose.
Once they get the 'issues' related to why they are installing the equipment sorted out and the supply chain requirements start to cut in (its only a few years ago that KFC & Mc Donald's started using 'real' trucks to deliver materials in smaller towns and cities) and seeing refrigerated trucks in China is still a rarity, its even rarer to see the refrigeration plants turned on instead of blocks of ice inside. (and i STILL see MC Donald's delivering stuff via the MTR in Hong Kong)
In many respects China still lacks the infrastructure to deal with much of the need for RFID, certainly from a computing viewpoint.
Thanks again Hardcore for satisfying my queries. As you rightly say, security is not the main purpose of RFID technology as is being used in China currently. RFID can play a major role in the warehouse managment and I hope most of the supply chain managment software has provided hooks to interface RFID based inventory tracking. My experince at a large shoe store where a large inventory of the shoes is kept in the backside of the store and only sample designs and sizes are kept in the showroom. Everytime you ask for something to be tried the salesman shouts to the back end person to search and bring the required design and size. Its a lot of to-and fro- time consuming activity to serach for the right siza and right design. With RFID tracking it can just be achieved by pressing of few buttons on the PC. Another couple of years and I hope to see RFID being widely used in all departmental stores
Some people do seem to treat Twitter as a broadcast to the world of whatever they would text. So today there are many Tweets about the snow, for example. But some businesses do use it as tool for effective business communication, pointing to job openings and the like, as you mention in your post. It's all what you make of it.
i never get hang of the social network sites such as Facebook or twitter. The problem with me is that i like my privacy and most of the time people talk absurd stuff on such social networks. Considering the amount of messages i receive on facebook (i have an active account but i do check it often), i can never keep track of the messages. Tweeter is even worse. I do not know how i can benefit from them in my professional life, may when i move to marketing/sales!
You can filter for yourself by eliminating some people from your newsfeed. Another option is to organize your social media flow through applications like http://www.tweetdeck.com/ or http://hootsuite.com//
thanksAriella for the tips. As i never used tweeter so i did not know/ search for options to customize it. How often do you use twitter and for what purpose mainly. As 140 words is not enough to write stories so i guess the tweets should be concise!?
Mostly I use Tweets to link to online articles — my own and a few select others. Once in a while I will reply to someone's Tweet, but I don't really start conversations through it by Tweeting individuals or put out trivial queries like “What are you making for dinner?” Though I've seen a number of people claim that Twitter serves as a forum for people to publish their complaints about businesses, I've never used it in that way.
all these question just boils down to how we are going to utilize the website i definitely feel tweeting once a day, spending couple of minutes is a good exercise. for me i have definitely had loads of benefites especially in building contacts expandiny my network and finding loads of interesting people . it has definitely helped me in understanding lot of business and ideas. tweeting is GOOD always there will be pro s and cons it depends on how we optimize them.
In order to communicate effectively with your audience, the organization needs to make it's presence where the audience is. Social media is one avenue which has gathered millions of users under one umbrella. That's what makes Twitter and Facebook such effective tools of communication. I feel communication with the customers through social media will increase a whole lot in the upcoming years as more and more organizations develop their social presence and begin to realize it's benefits.
“As 140 words is not enough to write stories so i guess the tweets should be concise!?”
I think of the reasons why Twitter is so beautiful is because of this limit in characters. It makes it a whole lot easier to follow on a number of ideas and information at one time. It also makes sure the Tweeter keeps the message concise and interesting.
One needs to use Twitter judiciously especially for any professional communications. While I enjoy getting news about what is happening in our industry, I do not want to be flooded.
Several “tweets” over the course of a day are OK. But I have had as many as a dozen or more in the span of a few minutes from the same source. I am not exagerating. This happens several times and I will stop following this person.
You are talking so loud that I can not hear you.
Tweeting can be a great resource but how in the world do you spend only 5 minutes a day on Twitter and get great information? Yes, I understand it's about who you follow – but even those people sometimes have a tendency to add junk. It can be frustrating and time-consuming. I do use Twitter, just not as much as I probably should.
I have the exact same reaction, Tony. I've begun “unfollowing” people who Tweet constantly and offer massive quantity and little quality.
'Unfollow' those who tweet a lot can become issue especially when they are friends or just 'i know them'. I have seen cases in my friend circle where people got offended when they got blocked on facebook or orkut! So i guess selective reading can be a way out.
On Facebook, you can simply eliminate them from the newsfeed without eliminating them from your list of Friends. I don't believe there is a parallel option on Twitter. So you may risk offending them if they really keep a watch on who is still following them. They would have to be on the lookout, though, because, as far as I know, Twitter does not send out notifications that someone has stopped following you, Also as Twitter is not set to be reciprocal the way Facebook is, they can continue to follow you unless you block them from doing so. I don't feel compelled to follow every single person who follows me on Twitter, so if they choose to follow me as a means to gain another follower, they may be disappointed.
Some of the comments for following or unfollowing seem more appropriate to social connections and friendships.
If we restirct our discussion to the professional use of twitter I think there is some business etiquette that needs to be developed. As I said in a prior post, it must be used judiciously. You need to be careful to not alienate those who are following you. You need to send tweets that are of interest. When you tweet you are trying to reach to someone and get their attention. Make your tweets worth reading.
hi dear Ariella i am nishant From india..
i am wanted to talk to you please join me on my facebook account is nverma089@gmail.com thank you…
I have also started to suffer from massive quantity of tweets, which coincide with pointless. Some people have talked about the benefits of Twitter in Marketing or to be updated with the latest news of whatever interests you, but I haven't seen the great benefits yet. On the other hand, I am seeing that some people just have to write something without saying anything.
-Susan
Susan, I absolutely agree. I suppose we should be grateful that people are limited to so few characters for their posts on nothing. At least they don't have to expand it to a minimum word count as does the hypothetical student writer in “How to Say Nothing in 500 Words.” I used to distribute copies of that piece to my students in Freshman Composition.
Exactly, Tony. “Make your tweets worth reading.” That's how I think, too.
If it's business or personal I would say that every tweet should carry some meaning worth to be read. I really hate it when I read several pointless tweets. Even if it's just a few characters it sums up and at the end it's several minutes wasted in reading nothing.
Maybe some time in the future there will be a Tweeter etiquette.
-Susan
Ariella, I am very grateful they have to limit themselves in saying nothing. Or, could that be the reason why they send many consecutive tweets?
Thanks for the link. 🙂 Maybe some twitters could use “etc.” after a couple of words.
-Susan
Himanshugupta, yes, selective reading is a good option. Once you have spotted who sends dozens of pointless tweets a day or you see you are not interests in what someone tweets you can start training your eyes to become selective when seeing the pictures. That could save some time and nerves.
-Susan
I think a way to approach a possible answer for (good) Al's question, could be: “Well, I am using tweets for business or individual social connection?”. In fact, depending on the choice, Twitter platform provides different API/features and possibilities (twit'biz or basically twit') then right etiquette to apply within tweets among you and followers. Based on this approach, you can build steps ahead like “cotweet” for example and so on. Is there someone's getting conversations in one stream for business ?
A Tweet pointed me to a post that gives the results of a poll on what causes people to unfollow. See http://smartblogs.com/socialmedia/2010/12/29/when-it-comes-to-social-networks-how-much-is-too-much/
Interesting link, Ariella. Thanks.
In my case, I feel something is too much when it tires me, gives me nothing positive and doesn't leave room for my own thinking time. If that makes sense. Yes, there is a need for distraction, less serious communication and all. The question is if we want to do everything with everybody. Social media is still developing and it seems we are all learning about what it works and what it doesn't work for us. It is interesting from a philosophical and psychosocial point of view, too.
-Susan
Tony – I can't agree more, most tweets aren't worth reading and are meaningless. If people put more time into their tweets and had a more business like approach I think more people would follow them or atleast get involved but much of the social networking has become extremely childish and not worth reading.
I think all these Social Networking sites provide an open worldwide platform where depending upon your interest you can create your own domains to serve your purpose. Like what Avnet like companies seem to have done you can use these media for connecting with your customers in a more informal way. Only thing is that because some people use these sites to put their minute-by-minute sneezing and yawning scores just to pass time . If we are able to filter such content then All these media can serve a very good purpose.
True. But that's the case for almost anything on the web. Websites, FB, Twitter, etc. The web is full of great content and productive sources. It's also flooded with more junk and distractions. Focus is key when it comes to building and maintaining a good audience.
My call is to Tweet if that is where the customers are, sneezing, yawning or not. Meet them where they are and engage their interest. Customer service is getting to know your client and serving their needs. The data in the social media is a good source of information to go after people who will like buy your goods.
Agreed. Corporate tweeting is not the same as social tweeting. Companies have to engage customers where they congregate and Twitter offers businesses a chance to use a widely adopted technology to disseminate information quickly — and cheaply. Businesses don't use Twitter to announce what the CEO had for breakfast but they use it to announce new products, updates, expansion programs, appointments and the like. Those who sign up for a company's Tweet know what they most likely will get. A company that sends inappropriate Tweets will no doubt get punished immediately. It's just another tool in the hands of a smart marketing team and we can expect more of such applications in future.
I agree with you Boljaji. Companies should used this social networking for their marketing strategies. People are so into social networking nowadays and this is most efficient and lesser cost way of advertising.
I don't know how helpful is tweeting when it comes to promoting a company's products. Perhaps it depends on what kind of products. If the target market is someone like the elderly who does not tweet, then I don't see the point of tweeting. I personally have not gotten interested in tweeting. I'd rather look in Yelp or Facebook.
While RFID seems like it is gaining popularity, I still do not see widespread adoption for the “internet of things” realm. We often have to think very hard to come up with how RFID can improve our lives. But in reality, we are thinking too hard to make this application worthwhile.
I have heard that China may implement RFID readers at the school vicinity so that the parents can keep track of where their kids are given that there are increasing kidnapping involved
You can link your tweeter to any social networking such facebook.Take note we are talking about electronic products here and IMHO this social networking tool is very convenient option to market electronic products.
You have genuilnely motivated me to revisit my twitter page and get it on my blackberry. Hope it turns out to be a real ' game changer ' in my communications scheme of things..
That's right, pocharle. Focus is the key. And how can you focus on something meaningful if half of what some people tweet is irrelevant not only for business but also at personal level. I still don't understand why people would tweet broadcasting they are going to take a nap or have a shower or are at X place. You have to teach yourself to ignore those tweets when you only can get the news or some relevant and interesting information in 10 minutes tops and move on to your next activity, right?
-Susan
I agree. Although RFID does have some critical applications, majority of the new applications seem to be driven mainly by the manufacturers of RFID chips. I dont really find the concept of the internet of things to be much exciting as the complexity involved in actually making it work will never allow this to be market friendly.
Right. I think the tweets that are most read in the business world are the ones that offer usable information rather than blah blah blah drooling. However, do you think there's any role at all for personal information in the corporate world? For instance, tweets that offer a glimpse into an executive's lifestyle could also be mined for information that may help current and potential partners develop a better strategy for relating with the individual.
A tweet about where an executive is going on vacation, for example, could offer an opportunity for dialogue and development of a social relationship that could also be useful in the corporate environment. Of course, the reverse could also happen; flood of unwelcome advice/suggestions about the destination in the executive's mail box.
I do not tweet and have absolutely no current need to. Hopefully I won't need it in future too. Twitter is one of those services that make no products or engineer anything. It's a service you pin on your lapel. Several years ago the rage was blogging. Jack, Jill and the neighbor's pet poodle had their own blogs. Twitter must offer certain benefits to some people but most engineers avoid it because of the mindless drivel that comes with it. I know it will fade away in the near future but only to be replaced by a new variation of blah, blah, blah.
I Agree that tweeting is just a way of exhibiting one's desire to connect with people. It makes people feel like they are part of the community. I guess tweeting is not unlike creating your own web page but provide even more minute details about oneself.
I suppose tweeting makes sense businees wise; consumers want to be part of the marketing process. There is no doubt that it has proven to yield returns on investment, through interaction, engagement and ideas . For these purposes I agree.
Sure. I can just imagine how annoying it could be for someone to open his mailbox and find lots of unwanted suggestion for his next trip to his favorite destination.
But yes, I agree a little glimpse about the executive's lifestyle and preferences can be useful for a potential partner. In some countries a common practice is to have business breakfasts. It makes the business meeting more relaxed as the nice environment in which they take place unconsciously helps and invites to a more personal treatment and sharing before getting into the business topic. In these cases, having seen a tweet about the executive in question pondering certain kind of places or food likes might be useful at the time of choosing the place for the business breakfast. In the same scenario, the information about the preferred vacation place could be used as an ice-breaker.
-Susan
After reading Al's blog and Laurie Sullivan's, I came up with a questions I'd like to pose to the industry: is there a filter for social media? In other words, if I use Salmon, can I set it to alert me when certain users post, or certain topics are discussed? That would go a long way toward cutting through all the drivel.
I think the only reliable filter for a medium such as 'twitter' is the power-switch on ones computer.
Unfortunately as technology improves, it also improves the opportunity for certain groups of people to indulge the fantasy that they are somehow more 'interesting' than the rest of us, and the need to indulge the 'warm and fluffy' feelings of sharing mindless drivel.
It is sad that such insecurities are loosing mankind massive amounts of productive time and resources and for what?
I read recently in the DailyMail, that the under 25's now think it is better to 'tweat' than send an email. I still remember when people had to send a fax, which meant you got interrupted about once or twice a day, along comes email and now we are being interupted 20 times a day, if this 'tweating' for business takes off, then it's going to be once or twice a minute, heck….. soon we will be holding face to face meetings and we all know how productive most of those turn out to be.
The real casualty in all of this, is going to be the loss of thoughtful thinking and proper presentation of business communication. Can you imagine a Microsoft anti-trust court case, where some of the 'tweet' is related to business but the majority is related to inane chatter.
Your “on/off” comment made me lol…
I tend to agree with you about Twitter and digital communication in general. As easy as it is, everything is boiled down to an abbreviation or symbol and spelling has gone by the wayside (even long before social media). And sharing what you had for lunch with the world…was this ever important, short of recommending a place to your friends?
At the same time, I'm open to discussion about how social media fits in to business. A lot of smart people tell me that it does, and some of these people have a pretty good track record in keeping ahead of trends.
In the meantime, thanks for your feedback!
thanks for comment, I feel strongly as Avnet get's bigger over $20 b…we need to show a personality as to type of people you are working with…in the end it is a people biz and trust and working with nice people is key.
Also, In my case i want to know if I'm dealing with a White Sox or Cub fan 🙂 or worse a Packer fan…
great repsonse, my point was simple if you follow informative folks you will really get good info that can impact your career…
Thansk
I really thought the same way, but as a I narrowed down the folks I followed were experts in their field…I learn something everday…seriously. I would suggest u try it.
Thanks for comment…I dont believe tweeting replaces branding but it does become another tactic in marketing…any tactic can be poorly used.
THanks for responding…BINGO…a little fun mixed in does not hurt.
thanks for responding…its about who u follow.
thanks fully agree
tweeting is a very good way of promoting or advertising a product. its a cheap way of making something known to groups of people or the entire world. its also a good place for surveys, and statistics gathering of whats people think about any topic.
Tweeting is really great especially when it comes to promoting your business. An easy way to tell thousands of people about it.Its a way to build a professional network, extend your reach and build your brand.
Apart from established Social Media experts who have by the power of their own campaigns and publishing know how have come to the forefront, almost anyone can present themselves as a Social Media guru. It is important for business owners to realise that this new media is an extension direct marketing efforts. With the right partnerships for marketing Social Media can be used as a powerful device to enhance your influence on the internet.
Thanks,
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I have a tweeter account, but I rarely use because instead of using tweeter, I am using Facebook (and still don't understand where are the differences ….)
I totally agree with the article, and I have seen a lot of folks start to use social media to promote their business.