NeoMedia Technologies, Inc (NEOM)

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DD The Art of Mobile Marketing

http://www.mobilemonday.it/

Mobile marketing is moving forward in Europe/US, and fast-forward in Korea and Japan. A year ago this medium was at its infancy, today it has learnt creative approaches for reaching the customer abound.

No longer it is just SMS and slow WAP sites: the device in your pocket is becoming your iPod, your radio, your TV, your portal to the Internet, as well as your phone, so the opportunities for brand marketers to make the most of this channel are plenty.

During the next MoMo Milan on 13th November we will not only set out to introduce the possibilities and practicalities of this medium, but will also pick up where it left off and bring new ideas, successful campaigns and lessons learnt along the way from those early and not so adopters.

Proximity is becoming a significant part of mobile marketing: Near Field Communication (NFC) and bidimensional barcodes have already been used to deliver multimedia content to your mobile phone, together with other ubiquitous devices, supposing you want it of course. As of now, the mobile phone is the best positioned device for mobile marketing campaigns for it's multifunctional use and it's market penetration.

Since their introduction in late 2002, QR (Quick Response) codes have become widely used in Japan (the reader is embedded in any Japanese mobile phone), with consumers using them "to click on physical objects" by reading bidimensional barcodes, to access more information on everything from trees in parks to nutritional information for their MacDonalds hamburgers. According to recent research by DoCoMo, 70% of Japanese mobile owners have used them.

But a new development in Japan threatens to make QR codes disappear completely and soon!

Last month, Tokyo's annual CEATEC show (Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies) was once again a showcase for some of the coolest mobile technology on Planet Earth.

The new invisible "FP Codes" (from Fujitsu) and "audio QR" (from DoCoMo) stand for a pretty good chance of fast adoption - thanks to the Japanese mobile operators that will embed the technologies in their new phone line.

Fujitsu has dreamed up an invisible way to slap bar codes on products. It's called FP (Fine Picture) code, consisting of thin yellow lines that you can't see but your cell phone can. FP can contain any kind of data such as pricing information and will be able to also link you to websites for more details.

Fujitsu is naturally tight-lipped about how they do this – all they reveal is that the system was inspired by the fact that the sensitivity of human vision alters according to size and colour. Sounds complicated. The big draw of the system is, like blacklight QR codes, that the codes don't compromise the design of printed material. In the future will all printed pictures contain embedded codes?

DoCoMo has announced and demonstrated "audio QR" which enables mobiles phones to capture data transparentely embedded in music and jingles.

An audio QR code is simply broadcast as metadata in an audio signal, such that the browser displays text, a clickable URL or other advertising message while you listen to a radio or tv program on a suitably enabled mobile phone.

In US and Europe mobile barcode scanning has never been introduced on a large scale and those campaigns are now ready to emerge...

This month, Mobile Monday will bring you some of the most recognised pioneers on Proximity and Mobile Marketing in Italy.

Do not miss this opportunity! Be part of the MoMo global network that today consists of 45.000 members, over 400 events a year and chapters in 34 cities in Europe, Asia and North America.

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