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- PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - Applied
Digital Solutions, Inc. today announced that it has acquired the patent
rights to a miniature digital transceiver - which it has named "Digital
Angel" -- that can be used for a variety of purposes, such as providing
a tamper-proof means of identification for enhanced e-business security,
locating lost or missing individuals, tracking the location of valuable
property and monitoring the medical conditions of at-risk patients.
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- In the agreement signed last week, ADS acquired the right
to develop this unique product itself for all of its applications or to
sublicense the development of specific applications to other entities.
A special technology group has been formed within ADS to supervise the
development of the device.
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- The implantable transceiver sends and receives data and
can be continuously tracked by GPS (Global Positioning Satellite) technology.
The transceiver's power supply and actuation system are unlike anything
ever created. When implanted within a body, the device is powered electromechanically
through the movement of muscles, and it can be activated either by the
"wearer" or by the monitoring facility. A novel sensation feedback
feature will even allow the wearer to control the device to some degree.
The "smart" device is also small enough to be hidden inconspicuously
on or within valuable personal belongings and priceless works of art.
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- Commenting on Digital Angel's many potential applications,
Richard J. Sullivan, Chairman and CEO of Applied Digital Solutions, Inc.
(ADS), said: "We believe its potential for improving individual and
e-business security and enhancing the quality of life for millions of people
is virtually limitless. Although we're in the early developmental phase,
we expect to come forward with applications in many different areas, from
medical monitoring to law enforcement. However, in keeping with our core
strengths in the e-business to business arena, we plan to focus our initial
development efforts on the growing field of e-commerce security and user
ID verification."
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- Sullivan added that the multi-purpose technology would
enable ADS to tap into a vast global market, through licensing and other
commercial arrangements, with an estimated total value in excess of $100
billion. "The e-business to business security market alone could reach
as high as $10 to $12 billion in the near future," Sullivan added.
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- ADS is actively seeking joint venture partners to help
develop and market the unique technology. The company expects to create
a working prototype by the end of next year.
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- Applied Digital Solutions, Inc. is an e-business to business
solutions provider offering Internet, telecom, LAN and software services
to a wide variety of businesses throughout North America. For more information,
visit the Company's web site at www.adsx.com.
-
- Statements about the Company's future expectations, including
future revenues and earnings, and all other statements in this press release
other than historical facts are 'forward-looking statements' within the
meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and as that term is defined in the Private
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company intends that such forward-looking
statements involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at
any time, and the Company's actual results could differ materially from
expected results. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking
statements to reflect subsequently occurring events or circumstances.
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- ///////
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- By Jeff Ostrowski Cox News Service -
From The Beacon Journal Online
http://www.ohio.com/bj/business/docs/032063.htm
12-17-99
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-
- Chip implant smacks of '1984' - Tracking
device could be put in patients, children
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-
- PALM BEACH, FL
- Here's a high-tech tracking device not even George Orwell envisioned:
a gizmo slightly smaller than a dime inserted under a person's skin.
-
- Palm Beach-based Applied Digital Solutions said this
week that it bought the patent for the implant, which it calls the Digital
Angel. People who use the transmitter -- powered by the carrier's muscle
-- could be tracked by global positioning satellite, the same technology
used in some luxury cars and boats.
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- Richard Sullivan, chairman and chief executive of Applied
Digital, sees a multibillion-dollar market for the implant.
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- Parents who fear losing children to kidnappers might
buy the devices. People with Alzheimer's or heart disease might use the
transmitters so that medical help could arrive quickly.
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- The chip would hold medical and financial information.
There's no need to worry about Orwell's Big Brother, Sullivan said, because
no one will be forced to have an implant.
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- But Sullivan also said the criminal justice system might
use the implants to keep track of prisoners released early.
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- Civil libertarians cringe at such uses of technology.
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- ``This is a situation that can go in the blink of an
eye from being voluntary to being mandatory,'' said Emily Whitfield, a
spokeswoman for the American Civil Liberties Union.
-
- Applied Digital is developing the device and hopes to
have a version available late next year. Sullivan wouldn't say how much
Applied Digital paid for the patent, only that he bought it from a Boston-area
group of inventors.
-
- The implant would consist of a chip surrounded by Teflon
or titanium. Sullivan described the implant as the size of a thumbnail,
or about the circumference of a dime, though slightly thinner.
-
- Applied Digital specializes in business-to-business e-commerce,
and Sullivan said the company plans to first use the device for Internet
security. The implant could let someone at a computer verify the identity
of another thousands of miles away.
-
- Sullivan says the e-commerce market for the chip could
be worth $10 billion to $12 billion. When parents, patients and other customers
are added to the list of potential buyers, sales could reach $100 billion,
he said.
-
- People unwilling to have the chips in their bodies could
carry them. The chips also could be placed on such items as valuable paintings.
-
- It's unclear how much the chips would sell for.
-
- Last month, Deloitte & Touche named Applied Digital
the fifth fastest-growing technology company in the U.S. The company improved
on its ninth-place showing in last year's report.
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