A vending machine for iPods? - USATODAY.com

"'Automated retail is in the midst of an explosion,' says Michael Kasavana, a professor specializing in vending commerce at Michigan State University. 'Self-service applications have become prevalent is all aspects of business, especially where labor costs have become excessive.'
As the executive vice president for Zoom Systems, a vending machine seller in San Francisco, Mark Mullins loves automated retail. Self-checkout aisles at grocery stores, ticket kiosks, vending machines – you name it – if Mr. Mullins can control it, he'll fiddle with it in no time. 'Anything that's automated, I say 'Let's give it a try,' ' he says."

"American society has given birth to "Generation P" (for plastic), says Mr. Kasavana, and paying with plastic is good business for Mullins. A Zoom machine in the Atlanta airport recently sold in the neighborhood of $50,000 in merchandise, Mullins says, without revealing the actual figure."