RIVER FALLS, Wis. – Three Square Market (32M) is offering implanted chip technology to all of its employees next month.
As part of the optional program, employees at the Wisconsin company will be implanted with a RFID chip on Aug. 1, allowing them to make purchases in their break room micro market, open doors, login to computers, use the copy machine, etc.
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The company is expecting over 50 staff members to be voluntarily chipped. 32M is partnering with BioHax International and Jowan Osterland, CEO, based out of Sweden.
RFID technology or Radio-Frequency Identification uses electromagnetic fields to identify electronically stored information. Often referred to as "chip" technology, this option has become very popular in the European marketplace. The chip implant uses near-field communications (NFC); the same technology used in contactless credit cards and mobile payments. A chip is implanted between the thumb and forefinger underneath the skin within seconds.
"We foresee the use of RFID technology to drive everything from making purchases in our office break room market, opening doors, use of copy machines, logging into our office computers, unlocking phones, sharing business cards, storing medical/health information, and used as payment at other RFID terminals. Eventually, this technology will become standardized allowing you to use this as your passport, public transit, all purchasing opportunities, etc.," commented 32M CEO, Todd Westby.
32M is envisioning this technology to help it grow its other self-checkout businesses. "We see this as another payment and identification option that not only can be used in our markets but our other self-checkout/self-service applications that we are now deploying, which include convenience stores and fitness centers," added McMullan.