Everett, Wash. — In a move to drive continued development and deployment of state-of-the-art RFID systems and to accelerate adoption of RFID, Intermec Technologies Corp. and Zebra Technologies Corp. have announced that Zebra has joined Intermec's Rapid Start RFID intellectual property licensing program.
The Rapid Start Licensing Program provides Zebra access to a number of Intermec portfolios of patented RFID technology, including RFID tags, fixed and portable readers, and fixed and portable printers. In addition, Zebra has exercised the cross-licensing provision of the Rapid Start program, providing Intermec access to Zebra's RFID innovations. Intermec, a UNOVA Inc. company, holds more than 145 RFID patents covering broad areas of UHF supply chain RFID practice and application. Its 90-day Rapid Start licensing program, available through Aug. 31, is designed to provide access to Intermec RFID innovations and to clearly indicate which manufacturers and vendors are licensed to use Intermec's patented RFID technologies. "Intermec's Rapid Start program was created because end-user customers realize the benefits of RFID in mission-critical applications and want access to the full power of these systems," said Intermec president Tom Miller. "Our relationship with Zebra Technologies will continue to spur innovation of RFID applications and will drive adoption of powerful, flexible and reliable RFID systems." "This agreement between two leading companies in the automatic identification field will encourage the rapid deployment of RFID technology and will enhance the development of high-quality RFID products that enable customers to meet the growing number of RFID mandates worldwide," said Zebra chairman and CEO Edward Kaplan.
