Mindmatics started a QR Code campaign for T-Mobile's music community Electronic Beats. More here in german:

Das Mobile Portal des internationalen Music Community-Programms „Electronic Beats“ von T-Mobile wird ab September über eine QR-Code-Kampagne und Mobile Advertising beworben. Nachdem das von MindMatics entwickelte WAP-Portal in der Zielgruppe der 18- bis 29-Jährigen im Mobilen Internet im April erfolgreich gestartet wurde, werden die User nun über eine integrierte Kampagne zu den Portalen http://www.electronicbeats.net und http://www.electronicbeats.mobi hingeführt.

Die Kampagne verbindet digitale mit klassischen Marketing-Elementen: Über sogenannte QR-Codes, die über das Electronic Beats-Magazin und eventbezogene Flyer kommuniziert werden, können Interessenten zeit- und ortsunabhängig das Mobilfunkportal aufrufen und Music-News, CD-Reviews und andere Themen rund um Electronic Beats auf dem Mobiltelefon lesen. Die Readersoftware zum Einlesen der Codes installieren Teilnehmer einmalig auf ihrem Handy. Über Display Ad’s wird die Kampagne auf dem Mobiltelefon aktiv mit Electronic Beats- Visuals beworben. Das Electronic Beats Portal wird optimiert auf aktuelle Handyformate, wie z.B. auf die 3G-Version des Apple iPhones, ausgeliefert.

And here is the QR Code:



and a page from a magazine with the QR Code.

Location-Based Mobile Social Networking

Via Socialmedian

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Both OMA, the Open Mobile Alliance and GS1, responsible for the 1D Barcode Number assignment worldwide, have picked up interest in Mobile Barcodes. Both organizations have now approved QR Codes and Datamatrix as the two defacto 2D barcode standards.
Great!

Both organizations also try to define an interoperability standard especially in the field of Shortcodes aka indirect mode (number to be translated into an URL on a Server). GS1 points to the already existing EAN barcode numbers which are well established whereas OMA presents a different way of doing it (see mainly page 20).


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GS1

Datamatrix and QR Codes as GS1 approved 2D Barcodes, June 12-13 in New York.
Mobile Commerce Whitepaper by GS1
GS1 Japan on QR Codes.

OMA

Mobile Codes, MC (V1_0)(June 2008)

• V1_0 Candidate Reference Release (Whitepaper), June 2008
• V1_0 Good Progress on requirements
• V1_0 Consensus on definition of Indirect Mode Ecosystem
• V1_0 Candidate Release ~2Q09

OMA (October 2007)

Work to be undertaken:
The work will include recommendations of: choice of 2D barcode symbology(ies); the data stored in the barcodes; and terminal behaviours in response to reading barcodes, including behaviours with respect to some existing (1D and 2D) barcodes. The aim is to re-use as much of existing standards as possible. This way we can get a recommendation published as soon as possible, to avoid further fragmentation of the market. Prime candidates for re-use include the industrial standards for barcode symbologies QR and Datamatrix, and the NFC Forum NDEF data structure. The normative specifications to be developed shall ensure backward compatibility with relevant 2D barcode systems, so that mobile devices that are compliant to the specifications to be developed shall be able to recognize and process such existing 2D barcode print-outs or images.

The list of relevant specifications includes:
Quick Response, ISO/IEC 18004:2000
Datamatrix ISO/IEC 16022:2000
NFC Data Exchange Format (NDEF) Technical Specification
NFC Smart Poster Record Type Definition (RTD) Technical Specification
NFC URI RTD Technical Specification
NTT DoCoMo Bar Code Functions

Check it out for yourself:
Google Trends on different Barcodes

Compare with last year and Japan.

This recruitement ad was recently published in the swiss newspaper 20 Minuten.

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And SBB, Swiss Federal Railways, also uses them more and more:




See also:
More swiss QR Code projects

Image: Houston Fence Project

Houston Fence

The Houston Fence, located on the corner of Broadway and Houston, is an temporary outdoor installation inspired by QR-code patterns. These bar codes, when scanned with a mobile phone, allow pedestrians to seamlessly connect to online content such as web sites, blogs and others.

Scan the QR Code:



Via David Hartman

"bidi" stands for bidimensional and is the spanish name for 2D barcodes, the QR Code being the most famous one. With bidibooks you can now experience the first multilingual QR Code Books in Europe. Read the PDF to understand what it is all about.

And check out the catalogue of all Bidibooks out now and upcoming.

See also:
El Paìs: Los libros no terminan en el papel

※ Crossposted on kaywa.com

Emice gave me the green lights to blog this. The campaign will hit Brazil tomorrow. In her words:

This is the campaign for Valentine's for Fast Shop (www.fastshop.com.br), a retail for eletronics in Brazil. And just as a reminder: we celebrate Valentine's on June 12th here.

The campaign's name is "The Code of Love". The QR code is the main character, even though most people won't know at first what it is. Fast Shop has a strong appeal to innovation and the QR code exemplifies this perfectly. Also, Valentine's is known for the huge sale of mobiles among young people, so the QR code is pertinent.

The campaign is focused on Sao Paulo and will be starring in newspapers ads, POP materials such as window shops, alarm antennas and adhesives on the main shopping malls, catalogues that will be sent to AB class people homes. And we added a hotsite (www.fastshop.com.br/desvendeocodigo) that will be on after the campaign. The codes display messages such as present suggestions, store's solutions; they also link to the hotsite.

This is the second time Dentsu Latin America offers a QR Code campaign
for Fast Shop. First time was in 2007.

More pictures:
Poster
Poster II
FAST Shopping Bag

Tele Atlas expands LBS contest to Europe

Tele Atlas last week announced it will expand to Europe, Middle East and Africa its LBS start-up contest, Tele Atlas LBS Innovator Series. The Dutch company has now opened the call for entries in the first event to be held in EMEA: the “LBS – Out the Box” contest, which winners will be showcased at Mobile World Congress 2009 in Barcelona.

[...] Entries in the “LBS – Out the Box” contest will be judged based on commercial viability and innovative use of maps in the application in two categories. In the first one, “Market Ready”, entrants will submit a compelling LBS solution that is developed to offer consumers a commercially ready, end-to-end solution. In the second one, “Disruptive Innovation”, entrants will submit an innovative location-enhanced solution designed to push the boundaries in the LBS market.

LBS - Out the Box EMEA Developer Competition


Related: Locations on mobile phone (chinese)

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