NeoMedia Technologies, Inc (NEOM)

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Unwrapping Mobile Barcode Scanners
Posted In: Mobile Content

By Monica AllevenMonday, November 29, 2010


It's a pretty safe bet that as more smartphones are sold, more people will be using mobile barcode scanners this holiday season, and brands and agencies will want to capitalize on that.

A new white paper from NeoMedia Technologies, expected to be released tomorrow, sets forth some 2D barcode best practices for brands and agencies that are contemplating campaigns. The paper lists six key elements for best practices, including making sure barcodes are designed and placed so they're easy to identify and scan.

Other best practices include education, which for marketers may mean displaying information on how to download a reader, how to scan the code and what the result of scanning the code will be for the consumer. Testing also is advised – using a variety of mobile code applications running on a variety of camera-equipped mobile devices.

The white paper discusses proprietary "symbologies," which include 2D barcodes such as EZcode, Microsoft Tag, BeeTagg, Upcode, Trillcode, Quickmark and others. In contrast to non-proprietary symbologies, like QR code, proprietary symbologies can only be decoded by a software reader application provided or licensed by the company that developed it.

Arguing the case for non-proprietary symbologies, NeoMedia says it's important for brands and agencies to deploy their solutions using global, open standards as the use of proprietary solutions "may curtail universal customer access and therefore thwart market penetration," something NeoMedia's acting CEO Laura Marriott stressed in a recent interview.

In a statement, Marriott cites huge growth in the adoption of 2D barcodes by major global brands and retailers. "The terminology and implementation options can be confusing for those exploring the possibilities offered by 2D barcodes," she said. "This white paper brings clarity to industry definitions, as well as helping to guide brands, agencies and retailers when it comes to their implementation choices. Education is an important step in the continued growth and proliferation of 2D barcodes.”

The document explains the difference between some standard 2D barcode symbologies that are in the public domain – a Data Matrix barcode symbol (it looks like a square inkblot) and a QR code (also a square inkblot-looking image but with more squares inside.) More specifically, the Data Matrix barcode symbol contains a binary matrix of cells, each of which contain a space or a dot. A QR Code contains three smaller square "landmarks" that are used to find and orient the QR pattern for decoding on camera-equipped devices. All 2D barcodes can encode URLs and enter them, as if keyed, into Web browsers or messaging applications.

NeoMedia offers the NeoReader, which is pre-installed on some phones, like models from Sony Ericsson, and it's been working with Samsung Electronics Italy to get the NeoReader Enterprise application preloaded on Samsung's Omnia II devices.

But what's a consumer to do if a phone doesn't come with a scanner? Marriott has a couple of suggestions. Consumers can search for a barcode scanner in their app store – whether it be Android, iPhone, BlackBerry, Ovi or other – and make sure it's a universal reader, which is capable of reading any barcode and not a proprietary scanning application. And she says there's one more option – to go the NeoReader site for a download.

http://www.wirelessweek.com/news/2010/11/unwrapping-mobile-barcode-scanners/