Scanbuy signs global partnership agreement with Nokia to provide mobile marketing software on handsets
By Stefan Constantinescu on Sunday, February 11th, 2007 at 11:39 PM PST In Financial/Corporate News
Scanbuy, Inc., a global provider of wireless commerce solutions, today announced a global partnership agreement with Nokia (NYSE: NOK), the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturer, to preload Scanbuy’s mobile marketing software on Nokia handsets. The Greater China region (China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau) will be the first of a planned multi-market rollout for Nokia and Scanbuy, Inc.The Scanbuy technology will allow users of the Nokia S60 and S40 handsets to recognize and decode barcodes on products, media and advertising and to link directly to content and services from their handsets.
"We are thrilled to team up with Nokia to bring our technology to the largest mobile market and eventually the rest of the world," said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy, Inc. "Within the next 24 months we expect 2D barcodes to become ubiquitous within Greater China as marketers and media deploy codes on all products and advertising."
According to Informa Telecoms and Media, the global mobile market is expected to reach almost 3 billion by the year 2010 with Asia, the Middle East and Africa experiencing the highest growth rates. The new mobile user is seeking a more personal and context-sensitive experience. 1D and 2D bar code technology provides a seamless experience to navigate the physical world using a camera phone. Consumers can scan for product information on price, availability, features, rebates, special offers or similar products. Consumers can also scan embedded information in product advertisements and catalogs, create shopping lists, purchase items or link to the Web for more information.
Source: PR Newswire
I still think NFC is the future, this is just a temporary solution.
I don’t agree with you. It not easy to use NFC in print (magazines, billboards,stickers,etc.) So, for marketingpurposes, QR codes are the future.
Why wouldn’t it be easy?
Cost prohibitive maybe, but the benefits far out weigh the costs.
Barcodes and NFC are basically the same… The reason barcodes are interesting right now is that companies dont have to over haul their printing systems to put these barcodes out there.
NFC … its gonna be some time coming. I believe both systems will eventually coexist.
Is this partnership related to linear or 2D barcodes ?
A breaking secret for everyone !
It is not a Scanbuy proprietary solution. It was not developed by Scanbuy Inc., and it is not Scanbuy´s exclusive software.
The real name of this 2D code and complete project is Visualcodes.
1) Scanbuy´s core solution 2D barcode, which it calls “EZcodeâ€, and its code generator (encoder) and decoder application which it calls “Scanlifeâ€, are available for free on the Internet under the name their creator gave them, Visualcodes.
The complete project source code (decoder and encoder) is available for free download on the Internet. This project is still being updated by its authors, university students Beat Gfeller and Michael Rohs.
Here is a link to the Visualcodes project:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/visualcodes/
Full projetc even with the online encoder !
http://www.inf.ethz.ch/personal/rohs/visualcodes/
Even if Scanbuy made a ” agreement” with the software author it has no validation because was made after the software be released under GNU.
Once software has been released under the GPL or LGPL, it cannot be
retroactively changed and made proprietary.
Scanbuy hidden this info from the Companies and from everyone.
Incredible but true !
Just read this comment, went to http://www.inf.ethz.ch/personal/rohs/visualcodes/
created some 2D codes and decoded using my Nokia 6600 with a downloaded Scanbuy software inside. It worked ! Decoded normally the codes generated from this adress !
I thought it was a developed/proprietary/ Scanbuy´s software a company secret.The performance of this 2D solution is amazing ! It´s is a free software !
How about security issues ? All the source code (decoder and code generator) is available in the web and code generator is online also !
It´s not controled under a Scanbuy server / gateway !
How about security riscs , frauds ?
How about a promotion that print codes and people decode and win ? They can have code generators at their computers or generate from this link …and try until they win.
That´s very seriuos.
As a mobile solution developer it´s frustrating…but as a consumer should be Amazing !Hope all carriers adopte it fast….
I´ll wait for some company to realese a promotion (like printed codes in 7up bottles)so I could win easyly ! Just generating many codes from the web and decoding it (from my mobile) until I could win ! I don´t have to spend my money buying the bottles…Fantastic.
What a shame Scanbuy !
Colley.
I was cheking all related above info about Visualcodes and “Scanbuy solution”, shoking ! The http://www.inf.ethz.ch/personal/rohs/visualcodes/ is exactly the Scanbuy provided soution !
I could easly imagine a fraud possibility:
In October of 2006, the Coca-Cola Company used a 2D barcode in the largest such campaign ever, printing 2D Shotcode barcodes on 40 million Sprite bottles. Prizes were associated with the codes.
What could have happened if Coca-Cola’s encoder (code generator) and decoder software’s source code were available on the Internet?
Anyone reading this free and public documentation could understand the code generation process and create his own code. That fraud would cost only the prize amount, but if a legitimate winner were to latter scan the bottle and claim his prize, to be told it had already been claimed, the result could be far more costly in legal fees and bad publicity
http://www.shotcode.com/about/news?id=43
It’s not enough for Scanbuy to change the software, for under the GPL / LGPL it must place the new version in the public domain as well(remenber it´s is originaly a free software any derivated version must be free for public domain)).
The same potential for fraud, explained above, continues.
Scanbuy can´t comertilized this software for those purposes !
I´m receiving many messages regarding my comment (breaking new information) so let me tell for all at once.
I´m studing barcodes for over a decade.
I was informed about the Scanbuy 2D barcode trap, from a friend that works in a big American Carrier were Scanbuy tried to enter this tech.
The Carrier´s technicall staff found out this info after a profound research.
They send it to the legal department before entering into any business with Scanbuy.Their demand was especially related to a 2D barcode solution.
Part of their legal feed back was:
There are two main factors to consider. First, some problems are much more easily avoided than remedied, and you may not want to make Scanbuy’s problems your own, by subjecting your business to the consequences of legal interdictions and fraud charges. Second, some of what they offer for sale, others offer for free.
Finally they also found out many patent rejections for Scanbuy:
United States Patent and Trademark Office
http://www.uspto.gov/
go to: How To Search / TRACK patent status and enter the publication number below (not the application number)
-
Scanbuy’s rejected patent applications:
20060011728 Mobile device gateway providing access to instant information
Status
06-28-2005 Mail Final Rejection Mailed
-
20050004844 Integrating barcode scanner enabled services in existing e-commerce applications
Status
10-02-2006
Abandoned — Failure to Respond to an Office Action
-
20050029356 Scanner reader Active-X plug-in
Status
05-02-2006 Mail Final Rejection
05-01-2006 Final Rejection
–
20050029354 System associating sets of data into one barcode
Advisory Action Mailed 10-17-2006
(Note: an Advisory must be appealed in 3 months, otherwise it is pronounced a Final Rejection)
Regards,
Robert.
Hi friends,
I found some more interesting info about Scanbuy Inc. , the 2D solution, their rejected pattents at http://theponderingprimate.blogspot.com/2006/06/is-google-looking-at-scanbuy.html
It seems to be a blog that in managed from a Scanbuy´s investor, anyway there is more info there.Go there.
There is also some lawsuit info at http://www.techdaily.info/dg.lts/id.17901/news.news_view.htm
Scanbuy has been sued by Neomedia.
The suit was filed in April of 2004 and was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. The merit of the suit has not yet been investigated:
http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2004/apr/1033748.htm
I generated many 2D (visulacodes) and decoded from my cell phone (Sony Ericson w810i) with a Scanbuy´s 2D software.Can I say that it´s a Scanbuy software ??????
Worked, decoded !
Cool.
We have been looking into different barcode providers to run a promotion. All this is very confusing and disturbing. Definitely Scanbuy lost a lot of points here.
Summarize:
This 2D barcode solution (commercialized by Scanbuy) is not Intellectual Propery of Scanbuy.
Everyone can use it in many ways…
It´s a free open source full pack software.
That´s about freedom and free software.
Robert.
I was checking Nokia´s home page and couldn´t found any info about Scanbuy there.
Check an intelligent message from Marc Fonteijn at
http://thinkmobile.wordpress.com/2007/02/10/nokia-to-arrange-distribution-for-scanbuy/
One Response to “Nokia to arrange distribution for Scanbuyâ€
on 14 Feb 2007 at 9:14 am1 Marc Fonteijn
Strange move from nokia. I would rather see them supporting open standards (read: QR Codes).
Nokia also released an own QR Code reader some time ago. And if I’m not mistaking they will be shipping the N95 with this reader.
Just found many articles searching at: ScanBuy works with Ericsson …
but all dated 2004.
Google it “ScanBuy works with Ericsson ” check !
Did someone see Ericson mobiles using Scanbuy products ?
Lobby, advertising, paid articles.
Did someone try Neomedia solution ?
It also needs lens macro to recognize linear codes…I don´t see manufactures going this way (macro) in their road map.Typing many numbers on the mobile´s keypad, shouldn´t be a friendly experience.
Wasn’t it (2D Ezcodes) suppose to be the Scanbuy´s core solution?
So it’s not their I.P. ! I went trough the links, it’s a free student’s project.
What intellectual property does Scanbuy has regarding 2D barcodes?
Last week I sent a message to Scanbuy regarding this questions, but got no response.Sent it again on monday but nothing again.
I think ScanBuy’s (and others, NeoMedia, ShotCode etc)value is not in their proprietary codes such as EZ Code or Qode but in the continued development of compatible handset reader applications especially in the BREW/J2ME space.
Anyone who has worked in the mobile software development space, especially when working with phone hardware such as cameras through API out of the Java VM can tell you this is an expensive lengthy process. Java on a mobile is not like Java on a PC -ie one application works in all environments, you must “port” the application often to make it compatible with different models even when from the same manufacturer.
Each player in this space claims that their proprietary code (Qode, EZCode, ShotCode) offers something unique, is easier to read, fits more data etc. The simple fact from where I sit is that QR-CODES (Denso-Wave) have been around for years, are common knowledge and used daily in Japan, and are essentially the default international standard recieveing ISO certification. Denso-Wave holds the patent on the QR-Code but they state on their website that it is royalty free.
As an interested party in this space I have yet to be convinced by anyone that their proprietary code with usage royalties is vastly superior to the “free” QR-Code which has a proven track record. This is not to say these proprietary codes are not better just that I have not had the opportunity to perform the relevant tests and the camera on my Nokia N70 is pretty darn good, it would be interesting to see how each one operates on an LG 8380 (J2ME) handset for example.
I am more than happy to pay these guys for their continued development of the reader application but to pay them a “per-click” fee just because I am using their unique code is a very poor decision in my opinion, especially seeing that Visualcode and QR-Code are bothe essentially royalty free.
Further the whole “patents” situation stacks up very poorly and is just proving to be a waste of money for these companies who are continuously suing each other. There is enough pre-art in the market place dating back as far as ‘94-’95 (Denso-Wave)that I feel a court would have a very hard time enforcing any of the alleged patents. This whole space is full of petty online blog comment name calling and fighting and press releases that commit to nothing, it all seems very petty and unprofessional to me. Instead they should be focusing on acquiring critical mass of their readers and not worry about the barcode format.
Finally I have a quesiton for Robert on his comment:
Posted by: Robert | 2007.03.05 at 08:31
Hi friends,
I found some more interesting info about Scanbuy Inc. , the 2D solution, their rejected pattents at http://theponderingprimate.blogspot.com/2006/06/is-google-looking-at-scanbuy.html
It seems to be a blog that in managed from a Scanbuy´s investor, anyway there is more info there.
Robert are you sure Scott is an investor in ScanBuy?? His blog seems very non-bias to me and you may be damaging his reputation by claiming this. Do you have any evidence to support this? I would consider “The Pondering Primate” to be the resident expert on this space and it would be very poor form on his part if he is indeed and investor in ScanBuy, if you do have evidence to support this I would be very interested in seeing it.
Thanks for reading