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About 120 Coke cans are being covertly converted into a combination global positioning satellite receiver and cell phone. The lucky cola drinkers who find the high-tech cans can claim the grand prizes — but won't know when or where they'll arrive.
The cornerstone hinges on technology associated more with military forces — or spies — than soft drinks. Grand prize cans contain a GPS chip and antenna, a Subscriber Identity Module card that enables the can to act as a cell phone, a speaker, microphone and a panel with a keypad.
The cans, engineered by Airo Wireless, are disguised to look and feel like regular cans and are concealed inside multipacks of Coke and its caffeine-free, Cherry and Vanilla varieties. "The only real challenge we had was to take the technology we had and get it to fit into the size and weight of a Coca-Cola can," says Brian Troxell, an Airo engineer.
Consumers who find the winning cans activate the technology to call a pre-programmed hotline. They then must agree that Coke "search teams," using the GPS tracker, can surprise them anyplace, anytime up to three weeks to deliver the prizes, which include a 2005 Chevy Equinox SUV, a chance on $1 million through Harrah's Casino, Disney vacations and home entertainment systems.
The technology tracks cans to within about 50 feet anywhere in America, and winners must carry the cans at all times until one of five prize teams around the country shows up to exchange the prize for the can. "It's all about the surprise," Schiller says.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/2004-05-09-coke_x.htmMy husband thinks it's really cool but I think that story is creepy. Yeah, I really want coke knowing where I'm at at all time and have people on the internet able to following me around. No more cokes in this house for awhile.