Archive | Standards

Music Industry Identifiers: UPC vs ISRC

UPC vs. ISRC: What’s The Difference? In the last twenty years, there has been a notable shift in the music industry. The days of buying CDs and vinyl have mostly given way to the use of internet streaming services like Apple Music, Spotify, and Amazon Music. This change had many benefits but also presented difficulties, […]

Continue Reading

GS1 General Specifications Updated

GS1 global standards define how items are identified and marked. Although GS1 confusingly markets itself as the source to apply for a barcode, it is their standards that provide the framework for the identification of many industries. The master document is referred to as the GS1 General Specifications Version 24. Companies rely on their licensing […]

Continue Reading

GS1 Connect 2023: Denver, CO June 5-7

Rise to the Challenges of the Digital Supply Chain GS1 is the global identification standards organization and has local offices around the globe. Every year, GS1 Global offers a very comprehensive conference, GS1 Connect, for their local offices and members. For companies who wish to learn about the details of the identification standards, there are […]

Continue Reading

GS1 General Specifications Updated (Version 23)

GS1 global standards define how items are identified and marked. Although GS1 confusingly markets itself as the source to apply for a barcode, it is really their standards that provide the framework for the identification for many industries. The master document is referred to as the GS1 General Specifications Version 23. Companies rely on their […]

Continue Reading

GS1 General Specifications Version 22 Updated

GS1 global standards define how items are identified and marked. Although GS1 confusingly markets itself as the source to apply for a barcode, it is really their standards that provide the framework for the identification for many industries. The master document is referred to as the GS1 General Specifications Version 22. Companies rely on their […]

Continue Reading

Overview of GTIN Packaging Levels

Although we are the go to source for UPC implementation, many of our GS1 Service/Support clients rely on our consultants for correct identification for various GTIN  packaging levels.  Retailers and online marketplaces rely on barcodes and pack level identification for efficient supply chain processing. The GS1 General Specifications and GTIN Management Rules are extremely detailed […]

Continue Reading

Guidance for UPC barcodes for Comic Books

Comic Book Barcodes Since the 1980s, comic books sold in retail have included UPC barcodes. Unlike consumer product goods, a 2 or 5 digit supplemental barcode is included to the right of the 12-digit UPC barcode. The configuration has always been challenging, which is a result of the changing requirements within an evolving industry. Available […]

Continue Reading

GS1 General Specifications Revision (v21) Jan 2021

GS1 standards define how items are identified and marked. Although GS1 confusingly markets itself as the source to apply for a barcode, it is really their standards that provide the framework for the identification for many industries. Companies rely on their licensing of numbering structures for unique identification and their technical guidelines for barcode and […]

Continue Reading

GS1 Lowers Minimum Quantity for UPC GTINs

For the past 45 years, GS1 US (formerly the Uniform Code Council) has been the standards organization that administers UPCs allocations. Up until now, GS1 made licensing a Company Prefix mandatory for companies who wanted to identify their products with UPC. Their cost structure was extremely harsh for small companies that might not need more […]

Continue Reading