Multiple UnifiedPOS Implementation Scenarios

Multiple UnifiedPOS Implementation Scenarios To Be Shown at NRF 91st Annual Convention and EXPO

Vendors Unite To Demonstrate Cost-Saving Power Of UnifiedPOS

Washington, DC, USA. January 8, 2002.

The Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS), a retailer-driven membership organization dedicated to creating an open environment where retailers and technology vendors work together to create international retail technology standards, will be demonstrating the interoperability benefits of UnifiedPOS at the upcoming National Retail Federation 91st Annual Convention & EXPO, January 13-16, in New York City. The exhibit will consist of a continuous demonstration made up of a variety of hardware, software and peripheral deployment combinations from a mix of vendors who are dedicated to helping retailers by adhering to retail technology standards.

"In my thirty years in retail, extending the life of POS systems has always been a major IT objective," said Richard Mader, Executive Director of ARTS. "UnifiedPOS allows new peripherals and platforms to add business functionality without total replacement."

The ARTS exhibit at NRF's Annual Convention & EXPO will testify to the value of standards in the retail community by addressing several key concerns retailers have when purchasing a store system. The use of UnifiedPOS by an increasing number of hardware and software vendors will provide retailers with the freedom to choose best-of-breed components for a new store system. This freedom will prevent retailers from being tied to one vendor and will allow them to select a cost-effective total solution made up of vendors who can best meet their business needs. The use of UnifiedPOS by an increasing number of hardware and software vendors will provide retailers with the freedom to choose best-of-breed components for a new store system.

"We follow the UnifiedPOS standard because the freedom-of-choice it provides helped us reduce total costs for the POS hardware configuration we're rolling out later this year," said Danny Branch, VP of Store and People Systems at The Home Depot.

Additionally, retailers will gain the ability to maximize existing investments while adopting newer, more cost-effective technology through the use of UnifiedPOS and other standards. The plug-and-play capabilities of hardware and software that utilize UnifiedPOS standards provides retailers with easier deployment, accelerated customizations, and diversity in vendor and deployment options -- creating the opportunity for a faster time-to-market.

"We have found that the agility inherent in hardware and software that adhere to recognized standards provides a faster time-to-market for system deployment and the implementation of new peripherals," said Jeannine Ralston, VP of Store Systems at The Limited, Inc.

ARTS has brought together a variety of hardware and software vendors for the first ever UnifiedPOS collaborative effort, including 360Commerce, Chelsea Market Systems, Epson, IBM, PCMS Datafit, Sun Microsystems, and Wincor Nixdorf. Each software vendor will display their software running on two different combinations of server platform hardware and peripherals, demonstrating the retailer's ultimate freedom-of-choice.

Also on display in the ARTS booth will be a first-ever demonstration of the ARTS IXRetail, newly-released XML Digital Receipt Standard presented by AfterBOT, Infrared Data Association, and QuickSell Commerce. Digital Receipt is an electronic purchase verification transaction that can be issued by retailers, financial institutions or any other industry that provides consumers proof-of-purchase. The demonstration will showcase the power of the digital receipt as both a customer service tool and a promotion delivery vehicle for retailers.

The ARTS UnifiedPOS exhibit can be viewed during EXPO Hall hours at NRF Booth #981. Attendees are invited to stop by the booth to learn more about the standards initiative. In addition, ARTS will provide retailers with an in-depth update on the progress of standards in the retail industry. This presentation will take place on Sunday, January 13, 2002 at 2:30 p.m. in Room 1E10 and Room 1E11 in the Jacob Javits Convention Center. For more information about ARTS, please visit www.nrf-arts.org.

About ARTS Standards and UnifiedPOS Options

ARTS has three standards embraced by the retail industry around the world: (1) Standard Retail Data Model, (2) UnifiedPOS, a detailed, agreed-upon specification of all POS peripheral behavior, and (3) IXRetail, which describes inter-application interoperability. These standards have been created through a cooperative effort from retailers and hardware and software solution providers to reduce the time and cost of implementing retail technology from multiple vendors.

There are two implementation options of UnifiedPOS available to date. The first is OPOS, which is used for applications in any language on Windows. platforms. The second is JavaPOS, which is used for applications on any platform that supports Java. The implementation of either form of UnifiedPOS can open up additional options for retailers in terms of technology choices, a lower total cost of ownership of those choices, and a faster overall time-to-market in the implementation phase.

The Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS), a division of the National Retail Federation, is a retailer-driven membership organization dedicated to creating an international, barrier-free technology environment for retailers. ARTS was established in 1993 to ensure that technology works to enhance a retailer's ability to develop store level business solutions and avoid situations that limit a retailers' ability to implement change while providing industry standards designed to provide greater value at lower costs. For more information about ARTS and how to become a member, visit www.nrf-arts.org.

The National Retail Federation (NRF) is the world's largest retail trade association with membership that comprises all retail formats and channels of distribution including department, specialty, discount, catalog, Internet and independent stores. NRF members represent an industry that encompasses more than 1.4 million U.S. retail establishments, employs more than 20 million people -- about 1 in 5 American workers -- and registered 2000 sales of $3.4 trillion. NRF's international members operate stores in more than 50 nations. In its role as the retail industry's umbrella group, NRF also represents 32 national and 50 state associations in the U.S. as well as 36 international associations representing retailers abroad.

Prepared by Robin Cover for The XML Cover Pages archive. See the 2002-01 news item and "ARTS IXRetail."

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The Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS), a retailer-driven membership organization dedicated to creating an open environment where retailers and technology vendors work together to create international retail technology standards, will be demonstrating the interoperability benefits of UnifiedPOS at the upcoming National Retail Federation 91st Annual Convention & EXPO, January 13-16, in New York City. The exhibit will consist of a continuous demonstration made up of a variety of hardware, software and peripheral deployment combinations from a mix of vendors who are dedicated to helping retailers by adhering to retail technology standards. "In my thirty years in retail, extending the life of POS systems has always been a major IT objective," said Richard Mader, Executive Director of ARTS. "UnifiedPOS allows new peripherals and platforms to add business functionality without total replacement." The ARTS exhibit at NRF's Annual Convention & EXPO will testify to the value of standards in the retail community by addressing several key concerns retailers have when purchasing a store system. The use of UnifiedPOS by an increasing number of hardware and software vendors will provide retailers with the freedom to choose best-of-breed components for a new store system. This freedom will prevent retailers from being tied to one vendor and will allow them to select a cost-effective total solution made up of vendors who can best meet their business needs. The use of UnifiedPOS by an increasing number of hardware and software vendors will provide retailers with the freedom to choose best-of-breed components for a new store system. "We follow the UnifiedPOS standard because the freedom-of-choice it provides helped us reduce total costs for the POS hardware configuration we're rolling out later this year," said Danny Branch, VP of Store and People Systems at The Home Depot. Additionally, retailers will gain the ability to maximize existing investments while adopting newer, more cost-effective technology through the use of UnifiedPOS and other standards. The plug-and-play capabilities of hardware and software that utilize UnifiedPOS standards provides retailers with easier deployment, accelerated customizations, and diversity in vendor and deployment options -- creating the opportunity for a faster time-to-market. "We have found that the agility inherent in hardware and software that adhere to recognized standards provides a faster time-to-market for system deployment and the implementation of new peripherals," said Jeannine Ralston, VP of Store Systems at The Limited, Inc. ARTS has brought together a variety of hardware and software vendors for the first ever UnifiedPOS collaborative effort, including 360Commerce, Chelsea Market Systems, Epson, IBM, PCMS Datafit, Sun Microsystems, and Wincor Nixdorf. Each software vendor will display their software running on two different combinations of server platform hardware and peripherals, demonstrating the retailer's ultimate freedom-of-choice. Also on display in the ARTS booth will be a first-ever demonstration of the ARTS IXRetail, newly-released XML Digital Receipt Standard presented by AfterBOT, Infrared Data Association, and QuickSell Commerce. Digital Receipt is an electronic purchase verification transaction that can be issued by retailers, financial institutions or any other industry that provides consumers proof-of-purchase. The demonstration will showcase the power of the digital receipt as both a customer service tool and a promotion delivery vehicle for retailers. The ARTS UnifiedPOS exhibit can be viewed during EXPO Hall hours at NRF Booth #981. Attendees are invited to stop by the booth to learn more about the standards initiative. In addition, ARTS will provide retailers with an in-depth update on the progress of standards in the retail industry. This presentation will take place on Sunday, January 13, 2002 at 2:30 p.m. in Room 1E10 and Room 1E11 in the Jacob Javits Convention Center. For more information about ARTS, please visit www.nrf-arts.org. About ARTS Standards and UnifiedPOS Options ARTS has three standards embraced by the retail industry around the world: (1) Standard Retail Data Model, (2) UnifiedPOS, a detailed, agreed-upon specification of all POS peripheral behavior, and (3) IXRetail, which describes inter-application interoperability. These standards have been created through a cooperative effort from retailers and hardware and software solution providers to reduce the time and cost of implementing retail technology from multiple vendors. There are two implementation options of UnifiedPOS available to date. The first is OPOS, which is used for applications in any language on Windows. platforms. The second is JavaPOS, which is used for applications on any platform that supports Java. The implementation of either form of UnifiedPOS can open up additional options for retailers in terms of technology choices, a lower total cost of ownership of those choices, and a faster overall time-to-market in the implementation phase. The Association for Retail Technology Standards (ARTS), a division of the National Retail Federation, is a retailer-driven membership organization dedicated to creating an international, barrier-free technology environment for retailers. ARTS was established in 1993 to ensure that technology works to enhance a retailer's ability to develop store level business solutions and avoid situations that limit a retailers' ability to implement change while providing industry standards designed to provide greater value at lower costs. For more information about ARTS and how to become a member, visit www.nrf-arts.org. The National Retail Federation (NRF) is the world's largest retail trade association with membership that comprises all retail formats and channels of distribution including department, specialty, discount, catalog, Internet and independent stores. NRF members represent an industry that encompasses more than 1.4 million U.S. retail establishments, employs more than 20 million people -- about 1 in 5 American workers -- and registered 2000 sales of $3.4 trillion. NRF's international members operate stores in more than 50 nations. In its role as the retail industry's umbrella group, NRF also represents 32 national and 50 state associations in the U.S. as well as 36 international associations representing retailers abroad. Prepared by Robin Cover for The XML Cover Pages archive. See the 2002-01 news item and "ARTS IXRetail."