What Persistent Identity Makes Possible
A new design surface for physical products after checkout.
Physical products today are largely silent once sold.
They can be manufactured, distributed, and purchased, but they cannot reliably recognize themselves after the point of sale.
Persistent, unit-level digital identity changes that constraint.
When a product can be verified as itself across its lifecycle, it becomes possible to design behaviors around the product, not just around transactions, accounts, or campaigns.
These are not features or programs. They are design capabilities that become available once products can be recognized as themselves over time
What Changes When a Product Has Identity
When a physical product carries a persistent, verifiable digital identity:
The object can be recognized as a specific unit, not just a SKU
Interaction can be verified through the product itself
History can persist across verified interactions
Eligibility can be evaluated deterministically, based on verified scans
Fanlayer’s role is explicit and bounded:
Fanlayer provides persistent identity, server-side verification, lifecycle state evaluation, and eligibility evaluation based on verified scans.
Fanlayer does not design experiences, operate programs, deliver rewards, control commerce, own customer relationships, or guarantee outcomes.
All downstream behavior remains licensee-designed and licensee-operated.
Design Capabilities Enabled by Persistent Identity
The following capability classes become possible only when products carry a persistent identity. They are licensee-defined, infrastructure-safe, and non-overlapping.Presence-Aware Products
Products can behave differently depending on where they are verified.
Examples (illustrative):
Products are recognized when scanned in approved locations
Items that respond when returning to brand-controlled environments
What identity enables: Verified presence through the object, not the user.
Time-Aware Products
Products can recognize duration, intervals, and anniversaries.
Examples:
Eligibility that changes after long-term ownership
Behavior that responds after dormancy or return
What identity enables: Time as a design dimension, evaluated deterministically.
Use-Responsive Products
Products can respond to verified interaction, not inferred usage.
Examples:
Behavior based on repeated verified scans
Products that remain silent until meaningful interaction occurs
What identity enables: Deterministic interaction semantics without surveillance.
Event-Reactive Products
Products can participate during time-bounded moments.
Examples:
Products that respond only during live events
Behavior is limited to defined launch or broadcast windows
What identity enables: Scan-time evaluation against event conditions.
Living Provenance (Without Enforcement)
Products can carry a verified history without restricting future use.
Examples:
Items that acknowledge prior verified moments
Products that distinguish lifecycle states across ownership changes
What identity enables: Continuity without ownership enforcement or lock-in.
Thoughtful Transfer and Second Life
Products can recognize handoff without erasing history.
Examples:
Products that behave differently when gifted or transferred
Items that preserve legitimacy across ownership changes
What identity enables: Transfer-aware lifecycle states without overreach.
Products as Interfaces (Not Destinations)
Products can act as anchors, not platforms.
Examples:
Objects that verify eligibility and route into licensee systems
Products that unlock access without hosting content
What identity enables
Scan → verification → eligibility assertion → licensee-defined routing
Products remain physical. They do not become apps.
What This Is — and Is Not
This is not:
Campaign management
Content hosting
Behavioral profiling
Consumer platform operation
Ownership enforcement
This is:
Deterministic product identity infrastructure
Verified signals and lifecycle state
A new design surface for physical goods
Fanlayer supplies the signal. Licensees supply the meaning.
Where This Leads
Persistent identity allows teams to design post-sale product behavior that was previously impractical — without operating consumer platforms or embedding commerce logic.
This page describes the design surface. Industry pages and pilot discussions explore how licensees choose to use it.
Next Steps
Explore how this applies to your industry
Request an exploratory or pilot-scoping conversation
Discuss licensing structure and integration feasibility