Several years ago there was a lot of hype around barcodes, specifically QR codes that were tailor made for mobile phone users to capture and then navigate to a webpage where they would get more information about a product, film, whatever. Even Microsoft tried to get in the game by inventing their own version of QR codes, there variant used colors to look pretty in an attempt to grab attention. I can’t even be bothered to Google what they called it. The problem with barcodes is that they take a dedicated application to work. In the beginning there were applications that did nothing but decode QR codes. Today the world is a little more advanced, and now applications from online retailers such as Amazon or search engines as Google feature QR code reading built right in to provide a seamless user experience.
ScanBuy is taking things to the next level, by giving barcode reading capabilities to the millions of devices on the market that either can’t let users install applications or are too slow to decode a barcode. They’ve invented a new solution whereby you simple snap a picture of a barcode and send it to their servers via MMS or email and then all the magic is done on their end.
“Our technology is being deployed around the world, and this feature will give our customers another way to connect virtually any new camera phone to their digital content,” said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy. “Our users clearly prefer the seamless experience that is found with a ScanLife enabled device so we are working diligently with our mobile operator and handset partners to make the app a standardized feature.”
Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon have signed up, but will it actually make QR codes work? Doubtful. We’ll have to wait for NFC. It’s easier, faster, cooler.