The pace of the application of it to retail is rapid.that's the big story here. retailers are embracing it and embracing it in many ways." however, retailers also want the customer to feel at home and comfortable in a store's surroundings. "nobody wants to jar the consumer so that when they walk into the store they find that they've walked into the next century, " adds woolford. "it's about keeping the whole experience comfortable and familiar." but ready or not, the change has already started. in wal-mart's new canadian supercentres larger stores that carry 120, 000 products compared to 80, 000 in a typical wal-mart and offer a full line of gro c e ries and enhanced key departments such as fashion and electronics shoppers have already been introduced to 32inch lcd screens strategically placed above the cash registers. initially, this in-store television network, known as walmart shopcast tv, will broadcast a combination of store-specific advertising content and company information directly to customers while they shop. but as the program expands it was unveiled at the first four supercentres that opened in ontario in early november and it will be rolled out next at four more ontario supercentres to open in january 2007 in brampton, sarnia, scarborough and vaughan larger 46-inch lcd screens will start to appear in departments such as fashion and produce. they will feature department-specific information ranging from updates on the newest clothing items to food-preparation tips. eventually, all wal-mart stores will get the scre e n s programming, meanwhile, can be changed as quickly as it needs to be, but will likely take into consideration that customers shop their wal-mart stores every 10 to 14 days. "the main reason we're doing is be more relevant to the c u s ays wal-mart canada corp. s p o man o christi gallagher. "we host about a million customers a day. it's an innovative way for our customers who are time pressed to find out what's going on in their local stores, especially if they haven't had a chance to read their local circular." during a comprehensive pilot of the wal-mart shopcast tv p rogram conducted with muldoon and co. of richmond hill in conjunction with toronto-based starch researc h , 90 per cent of customers said wal-mart was creating a more pleasant shopping experience, 82 per cent said it provided new information, while 35 per cent said it informed them of products they did not know that wal-mart carried. but while wal-mart's program is already underway, other technological advances could take more time. "our sense of the timelines may be a little longer than the suppliers are suggesting, " says woolford. that's likely the case when it comes to machines to download audio books, music or prerecorded dvds in stores. "that is probably a couple of years off, as the digital rights management issues ; have to be worked through, " says ibm's bruce rasa, who notes that in addition to burning the content to a cd dvd for a predetermined price including a custom cover for the item there will also be the possibility of downloading the item to a user's own device, such as a cellphone or pda. rasa, based in raleigh, n.c., and product manager for the ibm anyplace kiosk, says it advances are propelling these changes. "with the digital revolution, why would people want to come into a store? this would be a way to add an added value to the retail experience ; , " says rasa."it's not quite here yet but there is a high interest in it." n ewer models of the anyplace kiosk can be found in some virgin megastores in the u.s., where virgin has renamed them as virgin vaults. they replace older and slower kiosks as well as other listening stations that were limited in function. customers can preview new cds, watch video trailers or view reviews and see screen shots. with this new implementation, virgin megastore is also building the infrastructure and l aying the gro u n d work for offering shoppers even more choices. for example, a "guided selling" application is planned to make product recommendations based on shoppers' music preferences and past purchases. the ibm anyplace kiosks, built with a sleek and compact design engineered to withstand even the harshest retail environments, give shoppers the ability to sample more than 250, 000 cds, 11, 000 dvds and 7, 000 games. t h ey can also be programmed to feature holiday or event-specific data and are able to relay statistics so that store managers or owners know what merchandise is in demand. maureen atkinson, a senior partner with the toronto-based retail consulting firm j. c. williams group, says it's time for the old "listening posts" found in music stores to move to the next level. "the extension of the old listening posts, that's going to be more common. it definitely is likely to happen sooner. at some point the retailers have to come to terms with what's happening in that industry, as far as web access and downloading. i think it's just a matter of time, " says atkinson. see carts page 4. Achieve the excellent physical condition of a professional kickboxer without the bumps and bruises. learn kickboxing techniques while getting a great workout. kickboxing uses every major muscle group and is effective for cardio fitness, toning and body-fat reduction. self-defense will be covered. a no-contact program and play texas poker.