] Mr. Brown "philosophically" prefers bottom up. But his
] strongest examples of design are top down: not only
] iTunes and Disney World, but also Ideo's design for
] Prada's New York store, which opened in December, 2003.
] There, every item, room, frequent shopper and salesperson
] is tagged with technology designed to enhance -- and
] control -- well, everything. Prada's pricey products are
] the high end of fashion: Many are one-offs or made in
] small quantities. The company aspires to discreetly
] "control" every aspect of its customers' experiences.
]
]
] If you're a frequent Prada shopper, the loyalty card in
] your wallet or purse contains a radio frequency
] identification (RFID) tag that announces your arrival in
] the store. When you encounter a saleswoman, her handheld
] computer brings up your tastes, buying history, vital
] statistics and personalized suggestions from in-stock and
] coming inventory; the handhelds also place orders and
] book change rooms. Every item for sale bears an RFID tag.
] The tag certifies the authenticity for Prada's pricey
] togs -- and discourages theft (setting off alarms) and
] counterfeiters (it's nearly impossible to copy).
]
]
] Prada's change room is certainly an experience. Its RFID
] reader electronically detects every item in the pile
] you've selected to try on. A video screen displays
] alternative colour combinations and co-ordinates. The
] room's mirror has a delayed-action camera so it can offer
] a 360-degree view of that fashion item on your body after
] you twirl around in front of it. The overall "experience"
] is sealed at the moment of transaction with a unique,
] Ideo-designed "Prada way of scanning." The only bottom-up
] part is the mirror in the change room.

[ Welcome to the future, people. This bit captures perfectly both the promise and the danger of these sorts of new technologies. I like the idea of being in the changeroom with a pair of pants and having the system make suggestions about matching shirts, or alternative colors. It's totally cool to use the tags as antitheft devices. What's not so kosher is storing personal information and accessing it, unprompted, as soon as i show up. Of course, if you shop with credit cards, this tracking is already done, only there's no way to scan your card while it's still in your wallet.

There's gonna be a lot of debate about this sort of thing. At the moment, it's confined to places i don't shop (i.e. Prada), but it won't be long before Wal-Mart implements all sorts of nasty RFID tech, and somehow i doubt they'll be interested in all the neat customer service applications for the tech. Cheap cheap cheap. -k]

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