Digital ads on shopping carts

Microsoft Corp. is bringing digital advertising to the grocery cart.

The software maker has spent four years working with Plano, Texas-based MediaCart Holdings Inc. on a grocery cart-mounted console that helps shoppers find products in the store, then scan and pay for their items without waiting in a checkout line.

Starting in the second half of this year, the companies plan to test MediaCart in Wakefern Food Corp.’s ShopRite supermarkets on the East Coast.

Customers with a ShopRite loyalty card will be able to log into a website at home and type in their grocery lists; when they get to the store and swipe their card on the MediaCart console, the list will appear. As shoppers scan their items and place them in their cart, the console gives a running price tally and checks items off the shopping list.