29/9 Guardian article about mobile Japan and QR Codes
| Category: QR Code, Data Matrix... By editor at 10:55 |
Why mobile Japan leads the world (the Guardian)
And in the UK there were some other QR Code projects. First of all Kerrang started it all back in November last year. Then it was the Pet Shop Boys who just came out with their QR Code video.
And now Umbro along Gia's 28Weeks Later campaign have followed.
But - after my morning pickiness - let's go back to the article and hit the one paragraph that I think really makes the difference between Japan and the rest of the world.
Yasuko San is aiming her mobile at a small, square tattoo on paper, clicking a little and peering happily at the result. Her prize? The latest novel written for the mobile, entitled "Teddy". Such serialised novels for mobiles are just the latest phone application that has caught the Japanese imagination, but - apart from neighbouring South Korea - few others.Sorry for being picky - Quick Response, it's called.
Those printed square icons, however, made their debut in the UK earlier this month (to promote the DVD of the film 28 Weeks Later). Known as QR (quick read) codes, they have aided Japan's mobile revolution by making it easy to access a web page via mobile. Users can be directed to sites by snapping the codes printed in magazines, posters and even on biscuits.
And in the UK there were some other QR Code projects. First of all Kerrang started it all back in November last year. Then it was the Pet Shop Boys who just came out with their QR Code video.
And now Umbro along Gia's 28Weeks Later campaign have followed.
But - after my morning pickiness - let's go back to the article and hit the one paragraph that I think really makes the difference between Japan and the rest of the world.
But why is such technology such a hit in Japan and not in other mobile-savvy nations such as Finland? According to the man who kickstarted the trend - the father of i-mode, NTT DoCoMo's Takeshi Natsuno - it is because of the Japanese genius for designing new technologies that can be adopted by anyone, especially techno-phobes. It's not about "bandwidth, nor standards, nor unique Japanese culture", he says. It is about "fun and convenience".What can I say more.
