Imagine it’s an unseasonably sunny day in December. You stop off on your way to work to catch a few rays, sip a coffee, and check out the latest issue of Accountancy. As you flip through the magazine you see an advert for a wonderful car, suit, watch, or whatever. You scan the QR code with the camera on your smartphone, and before you can say ‘I really shouldn’t buy this’, a text arrives from the nearest retailer with the item in stock, to tell you that it will hold it while you pop over to pick it up.

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