GS1, scam?

You will have noticed codes on products you buy, with a barcode, these are product codes. Also known initially as UPC (Universal Product Codes), and then for Europe, EAN (European Article Numbers), and now GTIN (Global Trade Identification Number).

These are 13 digits (12+checksum), and allocated by a company, GS1.

At the beginning the UPCs were allocated on a one off basis to companies for a one off fee, but this changed and now they are allocated to companies on the basis of an ongoing rental.

Rental makes sense.

It is 12 digits, but this is some whole blocks to each organisation so not evenly spread out, and ultimately they will run out, so a system to manage these makes sense. Rental makes sense on the basis that companies will only rent as many as they need, will be encouraged to recycle from discontinued products, and the whole blocks could be re-allocated to new companies once a company no longer needs them or goes bust, etc. Obviously re-use of codes needs a sensible waiting period, and GS1 even had recommendations on that for companies recycling numbers.

Except!

Things have changed, in that GS1 no longer recommends re-cycling numbers because many platforms stick them to a product and do not update/delete that record.

What is extra odd, when querying this, I found GS1 do not re-allocated lapsed blocks to new companies.

This means GTINs are allocated as a one-off operation to companies - never recycled to new companies and not even expected to be recycled within that company!

So rental is a scam!

Rental for one-off allocation makes no sense. If the allocations really are forever, then the pricing should be for a block to be allocated. Ongoing rental is a scam as if you stop renting the numbers stay allocated. Indeed, discontinued products continue to cost you if rental.

We only have 100, and the price has doubled this year. We do discontinue products, and we tried to recycle (several weeks or Amazon support is failing to do this). So at some point we will be renting a significant number of dead codes, and it will be worth getting a new 100 block, re-allocating new numbers for current products, and stopping rental of the old 100 block.

What is interesting is that platforms like Amazon do seem to lock in a GTIN, but also they seem to not care if it is your GTIN unless there is a conflict. So if Company A got a block of numbers, paid the year, did not use them, and then ceased. Company B could use those numbers on a platform like Amazon as no chance of a clash.

Interestingly GS1 have replied to my various emails right up until I said the above, and they said Company B could face fines. I asked for legal basis for fines. GTINs are not covered by a contract with Company B (not that fines are allowed in a contract). GTINs are not protected by trademark, copyright, or patent or any other legal framework I am aware of. I mean I may have missed something, so I am happy for them to enlighten me - and asked as much - but no reply.

It seems to me, in my honest opinion, a rental arrangement for a permanently allocated resource is a scam, simple as that. If it is permanently allocated it should be a one-off fee for the allocation.

That is just my view, obviously.

2D bar codes

I have done a lot on barcodes on my blog, and I am sure I have mentioned the URL shortener I made that is www.4.gg in the past.

It allows you to provide a URL and gives you a barcode for that in a variety of formats. Some time ago I changed from IEC16022 (DataMatrix) codes to IEC18004 (QR) codes simply because this is a tad like betamax vs VHS, and clearly QR codes have won. Shame, in my view, but they work. It's is even possible to script it to get codes for URLs from automated systems.

I was looking today at some of the stats on the site. It collects very few pieces of data - obviously it has a log of the mapping from an assigned code to a URL, it has to have that, and it records the date/time it was made, and the IP from which it was made and a hit count and latest time of use, and well, that is it.

It was never any attempt to collect data, personal or otherwise. I intended it to be useful, and well, we (A&A) use it for things like barcodes on invoices.

What makes it special is that the barcode is designed to fit the minimal QR code format, so is compact and/or easy to read. For example :-

That is the size of all of the barcodes it makes, the smallest allowed in normal IEC 18004 QR codes. But the URL shortener aspect means that can be any URL you like.

I checked, and was amazed that there are literally millions of hits on these codes now. It has been working for like 9 years now. We actually have over a 1000 new codes created a day now, which shocked me! When I started some camera phones had QR or data matrix readers, and even the Nokia phone had a bug that did not like a "z" in the code. These days phones have QR code readers in the camera apps, and iPhones just "see" QR codes when taking a picture...

So then comes GDPR, and I am concerned - we collect IP address when codes created and hit counts. Importantly we could collect way more if we wanted to. Some may count as "personal data" though that is questionable. So do I have to worry.

Well, best plan is make this an official free service by A&A and include in GDPR privacy statements. Annoying we have to do this crap in many ways, but let's do the right thing shall we.

BTW, the most popular code is some site that is now a parked domain, over 500k hits and even one today, so someone has put that barcode somewhere massively popular and I know nothing about it. Amazing how a free service I have not even advertised has taken off.

What is especially amusing is Facebook hampering my freedom of speech talking about it!

First time I have ever been accused of spamming... What is amusing is that I could post that screen shot on Facebook and a QR code of my post and the various comments and replies in QR code with no problem. Shows how effective Facebooks policies are in practice. LOL.