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TECHNOLOGY Wednesday 26 July 2017

Cyber staff: Wisconsin company offers to microchip employees

By IVAN MORENO “Part of my general con-
Associated Press cern is that we don’t go
A Wisconsin company is of- too fast and that we un-
fering to microchip its em- derstand the implications
ployees, enabling them to of these sorts of (technolo-
open doors, log onto their gies), which is why it’s good
computers and purchase we’re having this conver-
break room snacks with a sation,” he said.
simple swipe of the hand. Giles and other company
Three Square Market, also executives say they’re hav-
known as 32M, said more ing microchips implanted
than 50 employees are themselves next week but
voluntarily getting implants understand employees
Aug. 1 at what the compa- who don’t want to do it.
ny is calling a “chip party” About 85 people work at
at its River Falls headquar- 32M. “We have employees
ters. The chips are the size who have said, ‘I just don’t
of a grain of rice and are want to do it.’ And we 100
inserted underneath the percent respect that,” said
skin between the thumb Tony Danna, vice president
and forefinger using a sy- of international develop-
ringe. The procedure takes ment. Danna said the mi-
a couple of seconds. crochips can be easily re-
The technology is already moved in seconds, “just as
available in Europe but In this March 14, 2017, file photo, Jowan Osterlund from Biohax Sweden, holds a small microchip if you were taking a sliver
company leaders say this implant, similar to those implanted into workers at the Epicenter digital innovation business center out of your finger.”
during a party at the co-working space in central Stockholm.
is its first appearance in the Associated Press The company is using the
U.S. They hope the $300 microchips in-house for
microchips can eventually The company is partner- in the microchip is encrypt- might create some kind of now but other organiza-
be used on more than just ing with Sweden’s BioHax ed and does not use GPS. efficiency, but to me the tions have expressed inter-
snack machines — every- International, where em- But a professor at the Uni- downside is just too great,” est in recent days, includ-
thing from air travel, public ployees have been using versity of Wisconsin-Milwau- said Michael Zimmer, who ing a hospital chain, said
transit and storing medical the implants. Three Square kee said he worries about teaches internet ethics and Patrick McMullan, chief
information. Market is paying for the the potential for “function privacy at the college’s operating officer. He said
“We want to be on the employees’ microchips. creep,” where the stated School of Information Stud- he could not reveal the
forefront of this. This is some- While the technology has purpose of a technology ies. names of those who have
thing’s that’s coming,” said raised privacy concerns ends up spilling over into Zimmer said what 32M is expressed interest.
Curt Giles, president at because of the potential other uses, including sur- trying to achieve can be “We need to be respon-
32M, which operates 2,000 to track a person’s where- veillance. done through less invasive sible with this. This is not
self-checkout kiosks for abouts and purchases, of- “This is one of those tech- means, like with an iPhone something you can do
companies in 20 countries. ficials at 32M said the data nologies that sound like it app. fast,” McMullan said.q

Nielsen tries to quantify

the Hulu, YouTube effect

NEW YORK (AP) — Nielsen, ditional TV. watch them on demand.
the ratings service, an- Hulu and YouTube have Both services cost nearly
nounced Tuesday that it not revealed how many $40 a month. Media com-
will begin to tabulate how people have subscribed panies base the amount
many people get their for the live TV services that they charge advertisers on
live TV from Hulu and You- they launched in the spring the number of people who
Tube, an effort to provide as a counter to cable TV. are watching at a particu-
a more accurate picture Subscribers can stream lar time, and want to insure
of how many people now channels live on laptops, that online viewers are also
watch broadcast networks smartphones and else- counted as more people
by streaming them, rather where. They can also re- shift to using online stream- This June 24, 2015, file photo shows the Hulu Apple TV app
than watching them on tra- cord shows digitally or ing services.q icon.
Associated Press