The following is a translated version of a contributory article by Yim Chu-hwan, president of the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) ... Ed. Mobile RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology operates on the basis of an IT infrastructure for mobile telecommunications and the high-speed Internet, wired or wireless, in which Korea has already secured a competitive edge in the global market. It is a core technology and a new engine of growth that can create a wide range of services. The technology can also be utilized in various fields since it enables consumers to retrieve products data, trace the history of agricultural products, and make orders. Moreover, the RFID technology acts as the basis of ubiquitous computing capable of performing systematic telecommunications and computing between products. Accordingly, the technology, which plays to role as a basic technology fulfilling the ubiquitous society of the future, has been included among the list of eight new services and three infrastructures of the "u- IT839" project, thus vital to the nation's competitive strength. In addition to the simple function of identifying a product's unique ID, the RFID technology has not only the storage capacity for securing a product's record but also sensing powers that can detect and store the surrounding information, such as temperature, humidity and pressure levels. When these functions are combined, It is anticipated that the Ubiquitous Sensor Network (USN) will be developed. In the meantime, there is a growing movement to create new business models by attaching mobile RFIDs, the core technology under the ubiquitous environment, to mobile phones in step with the progress being made through the technological convergence in the field of mobile services. The mobile RFID is referred to as the utilization of the direct communication network between man and objects under the ubiquitous environment through the means of RFID reader chips attached to mobile phones for the retrieval of information. Likewise, a variety of applied services through the Internet and mobile communication networks is available to consumers by utilizing mobile phones with RFID reader chips for direct links with RFID tags attached to numerous objects and places, such as ad boards, posters, pamphlets, fliers, or public places like showrooms, exhibition halls, and museums. For the speedy commercialization of mobile RFIDs, it is essential that the government as a whole provide active assistance in promoting R&D activities first and render support for trial services together with the formulation of standards. Moreover, it has become a pressing task to prepare stringent legal and institutional devices to prevent the illegal dissemination of adult and harmful materials since mobile RFID services will allow users to have much easier access to information than the wireless Internet of today. Furthermore, it is also necessary to come up with devices to protect privacy as the possibility of its infringement has been on the rise due to the adoption of mobile RFIDs. On top of this, it is also a matter of urgency to revise subscription fees or adopt discounts for mobile RFID services as excessive telecom costs can hinder the dissemination of the service. Today, the status of Korean companies in terms of technological advancement in the RFID field is found out to be still one or two years behind those of advanced nations due to the lack of original technologies. Accordingly, the government has stepped up efforts to support the development of 900MHz RFID technologies and standards as part of its goal to secure RFID technologies. In the latter part of 2005, it has formulated standards for RFID reader chips to be built-in inside mobile phones with an aim to launch a trial service during the latter half of this year and commercial service in 2007. Currently, ETRI is in the process of developing RFID reader SoCs that can be mounted on mobile phones while seeking to assist private businesses in developing RFID terminals. As regards to the issue of RFID patents that can stand as the most prominent stumbling block to the commercialization of mobile RFID, a host of measures, such as the cross-licensing of applied patents, should be studied as it has already become a difficult task to secure original patents. Anticipated to be a link to a variety of applied services based on USN in the future, the mobile RFID technology will greatly speed up the path toward the "ubiquitous" information society.