'It hasn't delivered': The spectacular failure of self-checkout technology

ooli@lemmy.world to Technology@lemmy.world – 513 points –
'It hasn't delivered': The spectacular failure of self-checkout technology
bbc.com
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Over here stores are increasing their prices because people steal at the self-checkout. So they reduce costs by not having cashiers but then increase prices due to theft. Quite some logic.

You'd assume it's an easy balance to make: if (saving on cashiers - loss due to theft) > 0 implement self-checkout else don't implement.

Yes, but: They can shift the cost of theft onto consumers this way, without having to make their line item budget for payroll any bigger. The retailers don't give a fuck as long as they're not the ones paying.

Insurance is more likely to pay for shrink than paychecks.

Recurring shrink isn't going to be claimable. These customers are walking out with an extra case of Snapple not a TV.

Over here they increase their costs because we have no choice but to pay it.

and frankly the amount they lose is nothing to the amount they steal.

Quite some logic.

Yeah, it's win/win to the company. They save money on workers and charge more for the goods. They're double dipping. It's great... For them. But that's the way the capitalist machine works and is going to continue working until we fix the whole damn thing. As unfortunate as it is, this is basically expected behavior in our current society.