The radio frequency identification (RFID) market continues to shift and consolidate. In the past two weeks, Applied Digital has acquired wireless identification specialist eXI Wireless Inc., and RFID chipmakers Sokymat and Cubit Electronics have merged.
Applied Digital is the parent company of VeriChip Corp., the company that has aroused privacy concerns worldwide with its implantable RFID tags for tracking humans and pets. With the purchase of eXI, VeriChip gains another 200 dealers and distributors. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the VeriChip Health Information Microtransponder System for medical applications this year.
eXI provides security, patient wandering, infant protection and asset tracking products such as Halo, Roam Alert, Assetrac and Houndware for hospitals, nursing homes and commercial customers.
Applied Digital will pay $1.60 (Canadian) for each of eXI's approximately 10.1 million shares outstanding. The transaction should close early in 2005.
"Since the FDA granted clearance to market VeriChip for medical applications, we have been focused on rapidly building distribution," said Scott Silverman, chairman and CEO of Applied Digital. " Our short term focus is for VeriChip to partner with global medical supply, medical device and/or larger technology companies. eXI is the first step of this evolving distribution model."
The Sokymat-Cubit merger will combine Sokymat's low-frequency transponder manufacturing technology with Cubit's high-frequency transponder expertise.
Erfurt, Germany-based Cubit specializes in 13.56Mhz RFID technology for contactless cards. Sokymat, based in Granges, Switzerland, provides RFID tags for access and security, animal identification, and logistics applications.
"With Cubit's integration and by adding to our know-how the expertise that Cubit has in the area of 13.56Mhz RFID transponders, we acquire a competitive advantage on the side of technology, just like when we introduced the direct bonding technology for low frequency transponders," said Andre Ziegler, CEO of Sokymat.
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