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Singapore¡¯s first intelligent Innovative shopping carts - MediaCarts - to make its debut at a new Cold Storage supermarket outlet in Singapore
Supported by SPRING Singapore and A*STAR, Media Cart Asia will pilot flagship deployment in Asia at Cold Storage¡¯s new store at Fusionopolis
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Media Release
Singapore, 27 February 2008 | For immediate release
1 Media Cart Asia and Cold Storage are signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) today to deploy innovative shopping carts, MediaCarts at a new supermarket retail outlet in Singapore. The new store will be opening at One-North, Fusionopolis in 3rd quarter of 2008. Being located in the hub of R&D and innovation, we offer consumers a concept that focuses on a comprehensive supermarket offer in the marketplace atmosphere. Combined with a creative and trendy shopping ambience and incorporation of information technology systems to enhance the entire shopping experience.
2 Media Cart Asia will be piloting their flagship product, MediaCartTM System at this new store. MediaCartTM is a technology-enabled shopping cart that brings about point-of-sales product promotions at the retail shop floor. It incorporates RFID technologies, amongst others, to identify shopper?s location and profile, and delivers targeted advertisement and promotional messages to shoppers via a LCD screen mounted at the front of the cart. In addition, MediaCartTM is also an efficient shopping tool as shoppers can use the cart to find items or view their shopping list. The technology was first piloted in ShopRite stores in the US, by Media Cart Holdings, Inc. Media Cart Asia has licensed the technology from Media Cart Holdings and has exclusive rights for the Asian market. (Refer to Appendix 1 ¨C description of MediaCart System)
3 Commenting on this latest collaboration between Media Cart Asia and Cold Storage, Mr S Iswaran, the Minister of State for Trade and Industry said, "Over the past few years, Singapore has continued to witness healthy growth in RFID adoption by various industries, including innovative applications in the tourism, healthcare, manufacturing and retail sectors. I am happy to see that the MediaCart project supported by SPRING Singapore and A*STAR Exploit Technologies is bearing fruit. The current deployment of RFID technologies in MediaCarts to boost the retail industry is yet another milestone development to spur greater industry interest and adoption in Singapore."
4 For the pilot deployment at the Cold Storage store, Media Cart Asia will be testing features including Point-of-Sales product promotions and ?Product Locator?. The ?Product Locator? feature enables shoppers to find items they wish to purchase by showing a map of the store on the screen and the location of the product. The supermarket also has the option to integrate the cart with their loyalty card system, thus allowing shoppers to generate shopping lists through the retailer web-portal and subsequently, view the lists on the carts while shopping. According to Mr Choo Peng Chee, CEO Supermarket, Cold Storage ¡°This will certainly be an exciting customer initiative that we are proud to bring to our customers. Being innovative is an integral part of good customer service.¡±
5 According to Media Cart Asia founder, Dr Jannie Tay, ?we are very happy to work with Cold Storage on this project ¨C this marks a significant milestone for Media Cart Asia, being the first deployment in Asia. We are certain that MediaCart will bring significant values and benefits to retailers, marketers and shoppers, and we are glad to be able to bring this value to Singapore retail industry. Essentially, MediaCart is both an effective advertising medium and a powerful data analytics tool, and at the same time, it enhances shopper?s experience with potential to increase the shopper?s basket size and increase consumer loyalty.?
6 Media Cart Asia has been working closely with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), SPRING Singapore and the National RFID Centre to develop the next generation of shopping carts since September last year. (Refer Appendix 2.)
7 The aim is to leverage on significant R&D expertise within A*STAR to design a new generation of MediaCart that is lower in cost, has better usability and is easy to manufacture and deploy at the retail stores. Along with the funding support from SPRING under the Technology Innovation Programme or TIP, Media Cart Asia was able to synergise the development efforts and is now well on track to deliver the new generation of shopping carts for deployment in Asia, with Singapore being the first country to pilot the system.
8 Dr Jannie Tay added, ¡°Media Cart Asia plays a vital role in transferring the knowledge and technology from our US partner, and then sharing and working with strategic partners in Singapore to jointly develop a highly competitive product. Working with SPRING, A*STAR and National RFID Centre has provided a strong catalyst for us to leapfrog in our technology and market development. Both the technical and financial supports provided by the Singapore government are vital especially for start-up companies like us to succeed.¡±
9 As the local enterprise development agency, SPRING Singapore has been playing a vital role in helping companies develop and upgrade their technology capabilities through the Technology Innovation Programme (TIP). "We are excited to see the partnership between Media Cart Asia and Cold Storage to deploy the innovative MediaCarts at Cold Storage's new store of the future at Fusionopolis. It is a good example of how our retail industry can innovate and leverage on new technologies to better understand shoppers' behaviour and provide better a shopping experience to them. "
10 For the Cold Storage deployment, the MediaCart will also incorporate the new Reader IC chip developed by A*STAR Institute of Microelectronics (IME) in its cart. The A*STAR IME Reader IC chip helps drive down the cost of cart significantly. This is the latest application of the chip that Exploit Technologies, the commercialisation arm of A*STAR, has successfully incorporated into an innovative product.
11 Mr Boon Swan Foo, Executive Chairman of Exploit Technologies, and Chairman of National RFID Centre Steering Committee said, "We are excited that Exploit Technologies has successfully commercialised A*STAR RFID technology to bolster the market potential of a local firm like Media Cart Asia. This collaboration certainly marks a strong market entry of A*STAR's new Reader IC chip. The Reader IC chip's practical application will strengthen Singapore retail industry, and give it a competitive edge in the fast changing retail landscape. The National RFID Centre will continue to ignite applications and support local companies in promoting RFID adoption.¡±
12 The MOU was signed at Singapore Marriott Hotel on 27 February 2008 by Dr Jannie Tay, Founder of Media Cart Asia and Mr Choo Peng Chee, CEO Supermarket of Cold Storage. The ceremony was witnessed by Mr S Iswaran, Minister of State for Trade and Industry, Mr Boon Swan Foo, Executive Chairman of Exploit Technologies Pte Ltd, and Mr Png Cheong Boon, Deputy Chief Executive of SPRING Singapore.
- End of Media Release -
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