Earlier this month, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell temporarily shelved the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board's plan to test a wine-vendig kiosk. The move looked to be an early sign of a brewing controversy, as the Liquor Control Board had already issued a news release announcing the pilot.
Now, though, Gov. Rendell has approved the test, and the PLCB will move forward with the pilot installation, according to an article from Supermarket News. The organization's goal is to determine whether it can use the kiosks to successfully prevent the illegal purchase of alcohol.
The device, developed by Pennsylvania-based Simple Brands, will use face-recognition technology and a breath sensor to verify the buyer's age and sobriety. Upon successful completion of the pilot, the kiosks will be placed in up to 100 grocery stores across the state.
The fate of the pilot will likely be followed closely by those in the self-service and supermarket industries, considering recent news of a Los Angeles organization's self-checkout and alcohol study and the pending legislation it has prompted in California. If passed, the bill would ban the purchase of alcohol from self-checkout lanes in the state.
