Leader: RFID, NFC and consumers

Research out today shows a surprisingly high awareness of radio frequency ID (RFID) chips and tagging possibilities among US citizens. One in four respondents to a survey said they know what RFID is and they can explain it to a peer. We bet awareness levels are around the same in the UK, though we don't have hard evidence to back it up.

There is a healthy debate about privacy and tagging chips. Not long ago a silicon.com journalist was told by a leading technology vendor how one airport group he deals with not only wants to tag luggage with RFID but ideally passengers' boarding cards too.

"Imagine when a passenger has lost track of time and they're stuck in duty free while the airline is desperately trying to finish boarding the plane," said the tech exec. "How good to know that straggler is browsing in a particular duty free area and they can be found."

Or, as the silicon.com staffer thought: "How appalled that passenger might be to learn the airline/airport can follow their every movement around departures, maybe even passing on that information to retailers and others."

Clearly an RFID tag on a boarding card doesn't have to be used that way but there is a fear that it might be. In reality, if systems come into play and there isn't violation of privacy then most people will just get on with their lives.

(And at this point let us say that beyond the reasonable arguments over privacy, this publication has largely stopped publishing any 'RFID marks the coming of The Beast 666'-type comments. Call us atheistic or anti-Christian or whatever but most of the comments aren't reasonable and certainly aren't original.)

Today also saw us report on the latest about another short range wireless technology, Near Field Communication - or NFC. This is very similar to RFID. For example, Philips RFID chips enable Oyster cards for travel on public transport in London yet smart cards for tourists at the Great Wall of China from the same company are based on NFC.

The difference is that NFC is a bit cleverer. Chips can read and write data as well transmit it.

We asked Philips, which is working with Sony as well as the likes of big three mobile makers Motorola, Nokia and Samsung on NFC, how this technology will be marketed. After all, a driving while chin-wagging ban has meant plenty of drivers now understand Bluetooth, another short-range wireless standard.

The short answer - and one we hope is true - is that it won't. Various devices and set-ups that use NFC will be known by the function they perform or by manufacturers' own brands.

Public awareness of things like the Oyster card will grow. But there's no need for people to be going on about how they use NFC to programme their video recorder or pay for tickets at their local cinema.

And that's the way it should be.