Simon Langford, Manager of RFID Strategies at retail giant Wal-Mart, will discuss where Wal-Mart is to date with radio frequency identification (RFID), results from the company’s RFID pilot projects and updates on the rollout and expansion. Hundreds of registrants from all over the world have already signed up for the biggest and most important RFID Web Conference of 2005. Web conferencing participants will be logging in from Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Croatia, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, Peurto Rico, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

“Xtalks is about reengineering the traditional events industry,” says John Hughes, CEO of Xtalks Inc. and sister company Honeycomb Worldwide Inc. “It’s about taking a quantum leap in the delivery of debate and discussion on hot topics in a time frame that is impossible for traditional web conferencing companies to match. The convergence of the event management and new media industries is going to touch every executive in their search for time sensitive, quality content and discussion. The business community at large is going to benefit from the ease of accessibility, cost effectiveness and efficiency that models such as Xtalks will bring. The way business is conducted is changing at a rapid pace; we’re very excited about being a major catalyst for this profound transformation.”

Simon Langford, Manager of RFID Strategies at Wal-Mart, has more than 20 years experience in the retail industry and is the principal architect of Wal-Mart's systems implementation of electronic product codes (EPCs). He is considered one of the leading experts in RFID implementation. Mr. Langford will be addressing the topic of RFID Implementation in a free interactive web conference hosted by Xtalks (www.xtalks.com) on February 23, 2005. The web conference is co-sponsored by Acsis Inc. (www.acsisinc.com), Symbol Technologies (www.symbol.com), and Zebra Technologies (www.zebra.com), who will present a workshop before the Q&A session. The conference is also produced in partnership with Integrated Solutions Magazine (www.integratedsolutionsmag.com), Silicon Valley NORTH (www.svn.ca) and Chain Store Age Magazine (www.chainstoreage.com).

“As organizations like Wal-Mart, Target and the US Department of Defense begin to require their suppliers to implement RFID, ’business as usual’ no longer exists,” says JP Fozo, Group Vice President of Xtalks Inc. “The supply chain is truly global, and this web conference proves that RFID affects executives in every country in the world. We are simply helping bring these industry leaders together in real time to share ideas, best practices and case studies. You no longer have to book flights and hotel reservations to hear industry experts speak about issues that matter to you. You can close your office door for an hour or two and converse with leading authorities on the other side of the world.”

The web conference will be of particular interest to managers and executives in retail, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, supply chain management and packaged goods. Registration for the event is currently open and free.

Xtalks brings industry experts to desktops around the world in a web-based conferencing information network that provides insight into breaking business issues through interactive digital web conferences. By leveraging the best of hi-speed Internet and telecom technology, Xtalks provides a fantastic forum for highly interactive communication. Xtalks web conferences allow anyone with interest in a particular topic to participate in a web meeting by synchronizing their desktop computer and phone alongside industry experts. Xtalks is part of The Honeycomb Worldwide Inc. Group of Companies (www.honeycombworldwide.com), including Honeycomb Connect, a leader in executive networking, event management, web conferencing, publishing, and digital media with offices in North America and Europe.

For more information on this conference or Xtalks in general, or to enquire about speaking opportunities or sponsoring future web conferencing events, visit www.xtalks.com.

Upcoming Xtalks Events

RFID Implementation Part I

February 23, 1:00 p.m. EST

Simon Langford, Manager of RFID Strategies, Wal-Mart

VoIP Implementation

March 22, 11:00 p.m. EST

Steve Conley, IT Director, Boston Red Sox

RFID Implementation Part II: Building a Business Case for RFID

April 6, 1:00 p.m. EST

Mark Dinning, RFID Leader, Dell

The Global Counterfeiting Problem

April 13, 1:00 p.m. EST

Timothy P. Trainer, President, International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition

Department of Defense's Current RFID Network

April 20, 12:00 p.m. EST

LTC. Charles Burke, USA Chief, US Army Logistics Network Task Force

Department of Defense's RFID Technology Standard

April TBA

Ed Coyle, Chief of the DoD Logistics Automatic Identification Technology Office, US Department of Defense

Reducing Complexity in the Automotive Supply Chain

May 11, 1:00 p.m. EST

Jeffrey Tew, Ph.D., General Motors Technical Fellow GroupManager, Manufacturing Modeling, General Motors R&D Center

RFID for Global Aviation

May 18

Jens Heitmann, Head of Systems/Equipment Standization, Policy Equipment Processes and Methods, Airbus, Kenneth D. Porad, Program Manager, Automated Identification Program, Boeing Commercial Airplanes

The Future of Asset Securitization

May 31, 11:00 a.m. EST

Alexander Batchvarov, Head of International Structured Fiance Research, Merrill Lynch

Making VoIP a Federal Case

June 7, 12:00 p.m. EST

Robert Pepper, Chief of Policy Development, Federal Communications Commission

Sarbanes-Oxley Act

June 15, 1:00 p.m. EST

Chrisan Herrod, Chief Security Officer, US Securities Exchange Commission

RFID and Privacy

July 8, 12:00 p.m. EST

Daniel W. Caprio, Jr., Chief Privacy Officer, U.S. Department of Commerce