Abstract: An apparatus for collecting and transmitting a retail data comprising a barcode data of the products purchased over each transaction. The apparatus comprises a terminal device that has loaded onto it a retail information collection application that receives, stores, processes, and transmits the retail data. Financial data such as credit card numbers and personal identification numbers are removed from the retail data before it is encrypted and transmitted over a network to a retail database. Clients including but not limited to goods suppliers and goods manufacturers may view retail data, including sales history and sales performance, on one or more products.

Abstract: An apparatus for collecting and transmitting a retail data comprising a barcode data of the products purchased over each transaction. The apparatus comprises a terminal device that has loaded onto it a retail information collection application that receives, stores, processes, and transmits the retail data. Financial data such as credit card numbers and personal identification numbers are removed from the retail data before it is encrypted and transmitted over a network to a retail database. Clients including but not limited to goods suppliers and goods manufacturers may view retail data, including sales history and sales performance, on one or more products.

Abstract: A loyalty program is enabled by a data collection set-up. The data collection set-up collects and transmits both the loyalty data and the product barcode data to a server. The server links the product barcode to a customer's purchase profile and issues messages where appropriate. The messages may comprise a redeemable voucher that bears a unique barcode, or an error message that informs the customer and the retailer that an invalid loyalty card or voucher has been scanned. The product barcode data may be cross checked with a marketing database so that the server may enable manufacturers or other goods suppliers to provide targeted advertising.

Abstract: A data distribution fabric enabled over a communications network. The fabric comprises several edge servers that engage in bidirectional communication with one another over the network. One of the edge servers has read/write access to a backup database and is a backup server. A data or a software application stored in the local hard disk or local cache of an edge server is accessible by all other edge servers within the fabric. A data that matches a report profile is added to the corresponding report, so that the data reporting is customizable and continuously updatable.