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Afterthought: RFID: Vision or fantasy? by Paul Zipkin
Up one levelMany glib assumptions are being made about the progress of RFID. It is generally assumed that the cost of RFID tags will inevitably fall to a level where they become economic for example, but achieving these low costs isn’t simply a matter of time. The chicken-and-egg challenge of cost (we need low costs to generate volume and we need volume to generate low costs) won’t be overcome without breakthroughs in many areas.
For example, ‘passive’ tags are much cheaper than ‘active’ tags but cannot deliver some of the key functionalities retailers want from RFID. Widespread assumptions that RFID will make theft and counterfeiting much more difficult underestimate the criminal mind. And issues of security and privacy are far more complicated than may appear at first sight.
In addition, none of these issues can be solved in isolation. If security and privacy issues aren’t conquered, RFID cannot be implemented. But solving these security and privacy issues has functionality – and cost – implications. Practitioners need to balance many conflicting demands and constraints. That’s why RFID has a bright but hazy future.
