Hitachi and Oracle plan to expand their IC tag business to help China fight against rampant counterfeiting, a company official said June 4. IC tags are tiny microchips that contain special identification codes and other data, which can help track down counterfeiting in anything from tickets to luxury goods.
Hitachi Ltd. and Oracle have introduced an IC tag in China which it hopes the country will use to embed tickets for the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai, a Hitachi official said.
China has faced growing criticism from its trading partners over piracy. The U.S. in April lodged a complaint against China with the World Trade Organization over counterfeited luxury goods and DVDs.
The Expo, which Shanghai officials expect to attract 70 million people over six months, is one of the major upcoming events meant to showcase China's rising clout. The Hitachi official said it was uncertain if its IC tags would be available for tickets to the 2008 Beijing Olympics due to issues over corporate sponsorship.
Hitachi and Oracle are partners in making the IC tags with the Ubiquitous ID Center, a Tokyo-based industry group.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2007
