Skinplex is a new commercial technology that uses the human body as a conductor of data. According to an article in EE Times, the developers, German start-up Ident Technoogy AG, hope to compete with RFID, Bluetooth, and Near Field Communications (NFC) for some applications:
Skinplex technology could be used between an identifier worn on the user's body and a receiver integrated into a car, for example. A distinct code is transmitted through touch, the receiver recognizes its dedicated, authorized sender, and the car door is opened, for example.
This reminds me of the Personal Area Network research at MIT's Media Lab in the mid-1990s. Neil Gershenfeld and Thomas Zimmerman demonstrated a system where two people could trade electronic business cards by shaking hands.
Link (via Carlo Longino at TheFeature)
