Thinfilm says it has received a 6-figure unit order from Constantia for incorporating NFC OpenSense technology into wine, spirit, and beverage labels and flexible packaging for consumer packaged goods (CPG).
Thin, flexible tags
Mike Henry, EVP Label Division, Constantia Flexibles, said it was excited to bring the technology to the marketplace.
“We have been collaborating with Thinfilm for over a year and are convinced our companies share an innovative DNA that will lead to real market differentiation,” he said.
“Consumers are expressing increased concerns about the way their food, beverages, health and beauty products are grown, harvested, and produced.
“Having access to brand information before (and after) a purchase is a valuable way for consumers to learn about their product’s ingredients, manufacturing process, and environmental friendliness.”
Thinfilm launched NFC OpenSense in Q1, 2015. They are thin, flexible tags that can detect a product’s sealed and open states and wirelessly communicate content with an NFC-enabled smartphone or device.
The tags remain active after a product’s factory seal has been broken, meaning brands can engage in consumer dialogue beyond the point-of-sale and continues throughout the product’s lifetime, including the opportunity to repurchase.
It demonstrated the technology at Mobile World Congress Shanghai in July, showing how it can monitor individual bottles that are packaged, shipped, stocked and purchased in their original factory-sealed state.
50%-70% of wine sold in China in potentially counterfeit
It claims, according to reports, 50%-70% of wine sold in China in potentially counterfeit. For premium brand wines, this percentage could be higher.
‘But what if a connected “smart bottle", that communicated with your smartphone, could tell you if that bottle of wine you’re about to purchase has been illegally refilled, is an all-out fake, or is actually the real thing … among other pieces of information about the bottle's content?’
NFC OpenSense can also give consumers visibility into product lineage. While authentication of a product’s originality is critical, consumer engagement is now weighed in as a factor when brand owners calculate ROI for such products.
Thinfilm and Constantia Flexibles are now working to create manufacturing and application processes for the product.
The label-focused initiatives will be managed by Constantia Flexibles’ Label Division and the company hopes to become a Thinfilm preferred converter partner.
“We look forward to leveraging Constantia Flexibles’ expertise to optimize processes for the integration of NFC OpenSense into packaging and make this powerful technology accessible to their clients,” said Davor Sutija, CEO, Thinfilm.
Thinfilm is based in Oslo, Norway with sites in Linköping, Sweden; San Jose, California, US; and sales offices in the US, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
The company creates printed systems that include memory, sensing, display, and wireless communication.