Speed Stick Promotion using 2D codes

Came across the Speed Stick promotion at Penn Station NYC last week. Pretty cool to see 2D codes being used in marketing promotions.

Visit the Campaign home page on your PC: http://speedstick.augme.com:81/

Visit the Campaign wap page from your phone: http://aug.me/Fi99gw

The campaign also uses a short code to get the user to the download page for a 2D code reader. I tried the SMS flow and the Wap site detected my N95 and then redirected me to a Nokia EULA page, wasnt able to get beyond that.

Petition for PHP support on Google App Engine

Have been tinkering with the Google App Engine for the last couple of days and since I have zero knowledge of python, I am finding it a pain to get up and running. 

Came across this interesting app asking for PHP support: http://i-want-php.appspot.com/

Wonder if some one will put up a petition for Java similar to the support on Stax. If you are a fan of PHP then please do go ahead and sign the petition. I have a feeling, some engineers at google are listening.

EZcode® Specifications Publicly Available to be a Global Standard

Scanbuy announced today that it intends to make the specifications for the EZcode 2D symbology globally available to the public.  Over the coming weeks, Scanbuy will publish the specifications for EZcode encoding and decoding to give software developers, campaign managers and code publishers worldwide the ability to utilize EZcodes which have quickly become one of the dominant mobile barcode formats worldwide.

Originally developed by ETH Zurich, Scanbuy holds the exclusive rights to the EZcode technology.  It was developed specifically for use with mobile devices and is being widely deployed in Europe, North America, Latin America and some Asian markets.  Hundreds of millions of EZcodes have been published because the mobile optimized code format can be read at a smaller physical size, provides the best performance under challenging conditions and can be decoded by the most camera phones on the market today.  These factors typically make the EZcode the preferred choice for marketers, media providers, mobile operators, and handset manufacturers.  

"Because EZcodes have quickly become a major force in the growth of mobile marketing, we believe it is now time to make this technology an open standard that everyone can use and benefit from," said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy.  "Scanbuy has always worked to grow and develop the worldwide 2D barcode ecosystem and today’s announcement shows our commitment to creating a vibrant and open global marketplace"

Scanbuy’s mobile barcode solutions also support Datamatrix, QR codes, and 1D formats (UPC, EAN, etc.).  Scanbuy has partnerships with major wireless operators including America Movil, Sprint, Telefonica, Telecom Italia, Telenor, and Vodafone, and with most handset manufacturers including LG and Samsung.  The ScanLife handset application has already been pre-loaded on millions of phones around the world.

I strongly believe having the EZcode open would explode the number of handsets that support barcode scanning especially since they can be scanned so easily from lower resolution handsets that still make up a major chunk of the market.  

Get the Press Release here.

Use QR Codes to talk back with the Author

Collin Edward is launching his new book: Where Am I.  In the book,  the author (also a psychologist) helps in answering the simple questions like "How do I get there? and where is there?".  I guess, everything you wanted to ask about "Space" were afraid to ask. Should make an interesting read...

The author has placed a QR code on the jacket of book so as to allow his readers to talk back to him through their cell phones. Collin mentions that he has been fascinated by the role technology has played in the shifting our relationship with place and space.  In the video below he explains the 2D barcode technology to his readers.

Read the authors take on why he is using QR Codes here.

I like the idea of 2D barcodes on book covers as a way to reach out to the author of the book. It opens up an instant channel of communication.  I just hope the URL that the code points to : (http://twitter.com/whereaminow) stays the same for a pretty long time ( I think it will).  However, I do believe that the indirect 2d barcode model could offer a more viable and effective solution for authors who would like to interact with their readers in a organized manner. Just another thing in the TO DO list for MeesaMo.

P.S> wanna a free singed copy of the book ? just scan the code on his blog and crack the code.

National Post in Canada uses ScanLife

The National Post, a daily Canadian newspaper, will start using ScanLife EZCodes starting today linking to editorial content from their mobile site (m.nationalpost.com).

The paper contains a total of 5 barcodes ( 1 on the cover and 4 in section A).

For more details click here or visit www.nationalpost.com/scanlife.

Check out the video:

Continous Mode 2d barcode reader for Iphone

The QuickMark reader (v 3.8) was release early in march. Among support for the other major platforms, this version has a build for the Iphone (availabe on App Store). 

2 things stand out:

Conitnous Scanning mode for Iphone ... wow, I was under the impression that the Iphone camera worked in the snapshot mode similar to J2ME but apparantly not. Cannot wait to get my hands on the app and try it out. The user experience will knock the other 2D barcode readers on the Iphone out.

Support for 1D barcodes with configurable server url. This is good news for third party developers offering product comparison services. I am not sure of the actual support though, I bet the HTC Dream ( G1) would have the 1D support but not sure if the Iphone supports 1 D scanning. The QuickMark site mentions that the 1D scanning is supported only on auto focus and macro focus based camera phones.

Links:

QuickMark   Release.

Via:

Jump Mobile

Outsourcing in Sports

Baseball scouts visit India in search for Pitchers.

Wonder if NFL would be going to India too ... unlikely but possible.

2D Barcodes to assist mobile content download

The 2D barcode model by its very nature works well in facilitating the download of content ( wall papers, ringtones, games etc) on the mobile device. I have been a strong supporter of the use of the barcodes in helping download content and I believe that digital content rather than mobile advertising would make the 2D barcode scanning adoption wider.

The use of 2D Barcodes (QR Codes) began in Japan and we had all sorts of applications coming out including the use of barcodes to deliver content.

 

The first time I saw barcodes being used for downloads close to home was back in 2006 when GetJar was using the GOD application to allow users to scan ShotCodes . The model was simple, the scanner worked on most camera phones, the Shotcode was easy to scan even with the quality of images from most cell phone cameras at that time, the scanner would shoot the code and launch the WAP browser that pointed to the download page for the application. The barcodes were published on the website under the Camera download section.  For some reason, I guess GetJar stopped using the 2D barcode system on their site, I do not find it anymore.

I recently came across Cellufun using the same download model using ScanLife EzCodes to facilitate downloads.  They have placed a barcode with all their content, the barcode is displayed in a "GET IT NOW" web widget displayed on either the left or right of all content pages. The barcode currently points to the main cellufun wap site rather than to the individual content page. I was hoping for a similar flow as the Camera Download on GetJar earlier but was disappointed. Its promising to see barcodes pop up on content download sites nevertheless. 

Competing with SMS

The short code SMS technology has long been used in downloading content and rightly so, it works !!!. I believe the mobile 2D barcode technology will work even better in some cases. The way I see it, usability plays a big role:  Launch the scanner app ( hopefully through a shortcut key), wave it over the barcode and voila information is captured and sent as opposed to opening up the compose box and texting in the characters and pressing the send button.

 SMS technology will still remain superior when it comes to pushing downloads on radio or television ( I really don't see people scanning the barcodes of their TV screens ... not yet at least) but its the pushing of content downloads from printed material and regular web sites where the 2D barcode technology can make a significant impact.This being said, the industry behind the 2D barcode technology needs to get its act together and tackle the issues:

1. Standardization: The industry is going through its own "browser wars" phase with everyone coming out with their own proprietery 2d symbology.  The industry must agree on certain formats, I do not think just the one format would be the clear winner as every symbology has its advantages in its own space. 

2. Interoperability: Lets face it, there are plenty of Scanner applications out there and as many resolution systems. The systems need to learn to talk the same language to interoperate. The GSMA and OMA standards for mobile barcodes looks like a step in the right direction.

3. Preloads Preloads Preloads: Burn the scanner app within the native camera module. The end user doesnt need a scanner app, he already has the camera. The 2D system that does this on a larger scale wins...

Peek into the Future

The 2D barcode technology has a Ace up its sleeve, "download content directly from the barcode" , No data connection required(take that SMS).  Imagine downloading a game or wallpaper without a data connection.

Applix and Mediaseek had announced that would work together on a camera based content management system (using CamReader) back in february. The CamReader app in Japan has already been use to download Jpegs and videos directly off QR codes.

The Mobile Multi Color Composite 2D codes (MMCC)created a buzz when they were announced and show a lot of promise in delivering content.  Cant wait till they get adopted in the main stream.

The V-Code (video 2D code) is another technology that could completely revamp the content download space. The only drawback is that since its a video code, it cannot be used on printed material but delivering content from websites would be a breeze especially in markets like India where data service on mobile phones is just picking up and there is a big demand for graphic content.

Barcodes, Barcodes and more Barcodes....

Qr Code started off as de facto standard in Japan but never really caught on in the rest of the world in the early years as the phone cameras were incapable of handling the density, this seems to be changing now as there is a wider adoption of smart phones. Datamatrix, more prevelant in Europe did get a good start with the Imode specification in France but I am now not sure as to its international appeal. Proprietery technologies (EzCode, Qode, BeeTagg, Microsoft Tag ... ) have had success in the recent years in several mobile phone based campaigns due to the ease of scanning that they offer.

I do believe that the 2D barcode industry should actively focus on the digital content market and provide solutions that make it easier for content providers to push content to the end user through the 2d codes. Content embedding barcodes show promise but until they become a reality the 2d barcode technology can rely on the on the in-direct model of taking the end user to the wap page with the link to download the content. 

Mippin Mobilizer for your Blog

I have been playing around with the Mippin Mobilizer to get a mobile version of my  blog.  I must say its a pretty cool service.  The service generates a WAP page from a existing RSS or Atom feed, ideal for blogs. I created a wap version of my blog: http://mippin.com/punitraizada (check it out on your mobile device - scan barcode below).

Scan the code on the left to view my blog on your mobile phone. To get the reader visit http://getscanlife.com on your mobile device.

Cool use of QR codes and Google Chart API

Came across the Cristian Contini's blog. Check out the cool use of QR codes to allow the user to get the perma link of the post. Really simple to setup. Neat idea.