Plenty of nefarious applications for this. The range alone blows away existing RFID designs, which will make it the preferred "chipping" technology for surveillance states everywhere.
There are positive uses. I can see this being useful for monitoring health in animals raised for food in addition to the medical applications the article mentioned.
That said, the potential for abuse is limited by what society will tolerate. We tolerate tracking and alcohol monitoring bracelets for people who drive drunk. If we tolerate tracking implants for sex offenders on parole or something I'm sure it'll filter down routine probation sentences eventually.
We tolerate tracking devices with camera, microphones and banking history in our pocket. We even pay for it. So i wouldn't count of the public wisdom on this. Or anything really.
The analogy is, retrospectively, not the best. I was alluding to the fact that most people take them almost everywhere they go, which is good enough for a surveillance state.
That said, the potential for abuse is limited by what society will tolerate. We tolerate tracking and alcohol monitoring bracelets for people who drive drunk. If we tolerate tracking implants for sex offenders on parole or something I'm sure it'll filter down routine probation sentences eventually.