Simnett

The Smartphone in Your Pocket Is a Multifunction Buying Machine | Epicenter | Wired.com

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 14:02:59 -0800

The Smartphone in Your Pocket Is a Multifunction Buying Machine | Epicenter | Wired.com:

es» interesting that more people scanned bar codes than use LBS to find a store.

BBC News - Social messaging apps 'lost networks $13.9bn in 2011'

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 11:51:54 -0800

BBC News - Social messaging apps 'lost networks $13.9bn in 2011':

es » interesting data from @ovum here. This BBC summary does not mention #imessage.

(via Android is most-used smartphone OS in UK, overtaking Apple,...

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 08:56:29 -0800

(via Android is most-used smartphone OS in UK, overtaking Apple, data shows | Technology | guardian.co.uk)

The Smartphone in the Real World

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 06:02:17 -0800

Smartphones are enabling more and more people to interact richly and efficiently with the world around them. A standard response today to “what’s this?”, “how much is it?”, “when’s that?”, or “how do I?” is to get out the phone and expect it to produce a smart answer, which, more and more, it does. Smartphones are enabling people to scan bar and QR (quick response) codes, tap NFC (near field communications) tags, experience Augmented Reality, locate themselves on maps, and do sophisticated Visual and Voice search. Even the humble SMS short code is often a way for someone to react to something they see in the real world (or the TV). All of these experiences have the potential to bring the power of the Internet into the real world in a personal and relevant way.

What sort of experiences are we talking about? SMS short codes have been used for TV voting and special offers. QR codes are found in bus stops (when’s the next bus?), on billboards and posters (movie showtimes and trailers, and interactive ads), in newspapers, magazines and inserts (coupons and special offers), in museums (identifying exhibits), at conferences and on wedding invitations (locations and schedules), and (thank you GoDaddy) on the TV screen. NFC is emerging and promises even more, with a strong emphasis on payments.

Rather than static printed information these new mobile-enhanced experiences are on-demand from a user’s point of view— what you want and no more— and can be customized by the content owner to the reader, time of day, location or other criteria. That adaptability and targeting is taken for granted on-line— it’s coming to the real world, via the smartphone.

To deliver great experiences content owners, application developers, and brands start by “attaching” their rich, Internet-based information to the real world, via QR code, NFC tag or the like. Then, to make this useful and actionable, they need analytics to understand how, where, and when that information is being accessed. It is with those real-world analytics that the experiences can be enhanced and developed over time.

It’s already clear a wide variety of technologies will play a role in tagging and enhancing the real world. Sometimes discussion of this is couched in dramatic language; we hear that QR codes are going to destroy short code SMS, and then augmented reality, visual search and NFC will replace QR codes. At the end of the day there is a role for many types of interaction, they are all solving similar fundamental problems.

What’s exciting to me is simply the way the power of the Internet can enhance real-world experiences. Bringing the Internet into the world is the value to consumers, exactly how that happens is not the important thing. Over the next few years the interactions will become more and more seamless, as phones and other devices are better and better connected. I am excited to be part of this.

Ed is the CEO of Delivr, a leading real-world analytics company delivering QR code and NFC based solutions.

"It is the physical space of a city, Ms. Kung said on a recent walk through downtown, that creates a..."

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 23:32:30 -0800

“It is the physical space of a city, Ms. Kung said on a recent walk through downtown, that creates a pedestrian’s view of the world. Ample sidewalks are crucial, she said, but they provide only the means of access to an environment that must then reward walkers through attractions like shopping and entertainment that cater specifically to foot traffic.”

- Denver Pedestrians Promote Walking’s Urban Potential - NYTimes.com (via omniar)

QR Codes vs. SMS | Business 2 Community

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 18:55:31 -0800

QR Codes vs. SMS | Business 2 Community:

es » interesting comments. At the end of the day both of these (and others) are way for smartphones to interact with the real world, which is the big trend.

Get Ready for 1 Billion Smartphones by 2016, Forrester Says - NYTimes.com

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 18:30:30 -0800

Get Ready for 1 Billion Smartphones by 2016, Forrester Says - NYTimes.com:

es» this is key: “Businesses should stop thinking about it as a small Web site on a tiny computer, and start thinking about mobile as being deeply embedded systems of engagement. That turns out to have huge implications.”

Quick Response Codes for the Modern Wedding Invitation - NYTimes.com

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 10:32:26 -0800

Quick Response Codes for the Modern Wedding Invitation - NYTimes.com:

es » one of the early consumer uses of QR codes was for train schedules- now details for weddings!

Foursquare Adds NFC Support To Its Android App | TechCrunch

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:49:32 -0800

Foursquare Adds NFC Support To Its Android App | TechCrunch:

es » great to see NFC in the wild

Mobile vs. fixed-line phones: A map showing the countries with the most cell phones per capita. - Slate Magazine

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:00:45 -0800

Mobile vs. fixed-line phones: A map showing the countries with the most cell phones per capita. - Slate Magazine:

es » interesting and fun representation of the data. Some amazing ratios here.

Real Augmented Reality Google Goggles In Prototype Stage? | TechCrunch

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:32:19 -0800

Real Augmented Reality Google Goggles In Prototype Stage? | TechCrunch:

es» less here than meets the eye (sorry), but interesting glimpse forward

"“We do not currently directly generate any meaningful revenue from the use of Facebook mobile..."

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 23:21:24 -0800

“

“We do not currently directly generate any meaningful revenue from the use of Facebook mobile products, and our ability to do so successfully is unproven,” the company said in its review of the risks it faces. In a world that is rapidly moving toward an era of mobile computing, this is a troubling issue for Silicon Valley’s brightest star — particularly since much of Facebook’s growth right now is in countries like Chile, Turkey, Venezuela and Brazil, where people largely have access to the Internet using cellphones.

es» no real analysis here, but I would expect almost all the revenue to be from US and Western Europe PC users.

”

- Facebook’s Mobility Challenge - NYTimes.com

"FOR years urban planners have emphasised the needs of the motorist over those of the pedestrian...."

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:23:48 -0800

“FOR years urban planners have emphasised the needs of the motorist over those of the pedestrian. Thanks partly to greenery, partly to a greater understanding of how pedestrians behave, and partly to concerns about social cohesion, priorities are changing.”

- Crowd dynamics: Walk this way | The Economist (via omniar)

benedictevans: The global handset business in one chart. Very...

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:08:54 -0800

benedictevans:

The global handset business in one chart. Very striking polarisation between Apple on one hand and Nokia/Samsung on the other.

It is equally clear that most of the other smartphone/Android players are pretty sub-scale.

This will be part of a big report I’m publishing for Enders Analysis next week.

Smart phones overtake client PCs in 2011 | Canalys

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:22:15 -0800

Smart phones overtake client PCs in 2011 | Canalys

curiositycounts: Facebook by numbers – currently bigger than...

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:04:55 -0800

curiositycounts:

Facebook by numbers – currently bigger than the U.S., smaller than India in “population.”

Is Audio The New QR Code? Shazam Goes To The Superbowl - hypebot

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:00:37 -0800

Is Audio The New QR Code? Shazam Goes To The Superbowl - hypebot:

es » audio tagging another way for users to engage with digital content in the real world/from the TV.

USPS Looks to Reinvent Successful QR Code Campaign « Barcoding Blog

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:58:10 -0800

USPS Looks to Reinvent Successful QR Code Campaign « Barcoding Blog:

es » great to see USPS “pushing the envelope” (sorry)

Super Bowl advertisers use QR codes in commercials | QR Code Press

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:39:34 -0800

Super Bowl advertisers use QR codes in commercials | QR Code Press

"it’s a lot like a smartphone. It might not sync with Google or Apple’s cloud services, but there’s a..."

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 13:45:15 -0800

“it’s a lot like a smartphone. It might not sync with Google or Apple’s cloud services, but there’s a decent Webkit-based web browser (or you can run Opera Mini), lots of apps (including Angry Birds and web apps), and support for 3G, WiFi, and Bluetooth. Series 40 even supports tethering: With a dinky, light-weight Series 40 phone in your pocket, you can access the internet on your laptop or tablet from anywhere.”

- The dumbphone strikes back | ExtremeTech (via omniar)