Scanbuy Signs Global Partnership Agreement With Nokia

Scanbuy and Nokia in the same press release. A tip of the hat goes out to Scanbuy for getting Nokia to preload their barcode scanning application on their phones.

Physical World Connection adoption just got a lot closer.

New York, NY, February 7, 2007- Scanbuy, Inc., (www.scanbuy.com) a global provider of wireless commerce solutions, today announced a global partnership agreement with Nokia (www.nokia.com)the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturer, to preload Scanbuy’s mobile marketing software on Nokia handsets. The Greater China region (China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau) will be the first of a planned multi-market rollout for Nokia and Scanbuy, Inc.

The Scanbuy technology will allow users of the Nokia S60 and S40 handsets to recognize and decode barcodes on products, media and advertising and to link directly to content and services from their handsets.

“We are thrilled to team up with Nokia to bring our technology to the largest mobile market and eventually the rest of the world,” said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy, Inc. “Within the next 24 months we expect 2D barcodes to become ubiquitous within Greater China as marketers and media deploy codes on all products and advertising.”

About Scanbuy
Scanbuy (www.scanbuy.com) is a global provider of mobile solutions allowing consumers to access mobile commerce and mobile marketing services in a simple and intuitive way. Scanbuy’s barcode-capture technology and services platforms are designed for handset manufacturers, wireless carriers, content providers and retailers to enable swift navigation from the handset to the physical world. Scanbuy is widely acknowledged as the leading solution provider in this emerging market which displays strong growth potential for the consumer wireless market throughout the world. Founded in New York in March 2000, Scanbuy is led by a pioneer in media and e-commerce and has a strong intellectual property portfolio with over 25 patents filed in the US and internationally since 2001. Scanbuy made Fortune’s 2005 list of “25 Breakout Companies” and the “Top 100 Companies in North America” in Red Herring in 2006. The company's investors include Longworth Venture Partners, Masthead Venture Partners and Hudson Ventures.

Last year Nokia invited me to give a presentation on what the "Mobile Internet" will look like. My presentation titled "Nokia, Connecting MORE Than People", included physical world hyperlinks and mobile phones.

With Scanbuy's help, Nokia now connects more than people.

Telefonica Espana Adopts Scanbuy's Mobile Barcode Platform

The largest wireless operator in Spain adopts Scanbuy's physical world connection platform.

From CBS Marketwatch Scanbuy and Telefonica Espana launch mobile barcode solution

Scanbuy, Inc., a global provider of wireless commerce solutions, today announced the completion of its mobile barcode platform created for Telefonica Moviles Espana , the largest wireless operator in Spain (TME).

The platform is the first of its kind in Europe to combine multiple uses of barcodes on mobile handsets.

Scanbuy's platform supports TME's strategy to facilitate access to mobile content and use of the handset as a transaction device for its 21.5 million subscribers and will be the first integrated platform combining couponing/ticketing and print-to-mobile. Atos Origin , an international information technology services provider, has been selected to provide systems integration and project management services to bring the solution to market.

By selecting Scanbuy's mobile barcode technology, TME will offer its Movistar subscribers access to content by simply pointing their camera phone at a two-dimensional barcode, to be found in advertising, on TV, business cards or websites. Scanbuy's client application ensures quick and easy access to online data and multimedia services from a wide range of handsets. Scanbuy's service platform will allow content providers to create, manage, and monitor their barcodes and to launch couponing and ticketing campaigns by sending barcodes within SMS or MMS.

"Being selected by Telefonica Moviles Espana, the leading mobile operator in Spain, is not only proof of Scanbuy's best of breed mobile barcode technology but it also positions Scanbuy as the global industry leader," said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy, Inc.

ScanBuy And DuPont Offer Brand Interaction With Barcodes And Camera Phone

Company's 2D Barcode Solutions To Be Used with Select Global Brands

This is a huge win for Scanbuy and for the Physical World Connection space. DuPont placing 2D codes on their packaging builds an immediate database for consumers to scan.

This should change the perception that Scanbuy was just a price comparison tool using a camera phone and barcode.

Scanbuy, Inc., (www.scanbuy.com) a global provider of wireless commerce solutions today announced an exclusive agreement with DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers (P&IP) (www.DuPont.com) to license Scanbuy’s interactive 2D (two dimensional) barcode technology for packaging applications.

As a part of the agreement, DuPont P&IP will be the exclusive marketer of Scanbuy’s interactive camera-phone technology to the packaging industry.

DuPont's Product and Services list . There's endless physical world hyperlink applications there.

DuPont P&IP selected Scanbuy as its exclusive technology provider to commercialize and market Scanbuy’s interactive technology to select global brands under the DuPont banner. When imbedded in product packaging, 2D barcode technology enables a myriad of consumer interactive applications directly from mobile handsets.

Some potential uses in packaging are checking nutritional content of food & beverages or determining if a cosmetic is suited for you, and more sophisticated uses like playing games & winning prizes.

“Smart packaging represents a key future packaging trend and opens up new opportunities that run the gamut from better inventory tracking to brand enhancement,” said Dr. John Hillenbrand, Vice President, Innovation and Technology for DuPont P&IP business unit.

“We chose to partner with Scanbuy because their barcode-capture technology and services platforms are clearly more advanced and robust than others in the market.”

“DuPont has long been an industry leader in packaging innovations and has deep expertise in commercialization of new products and technology,” said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy, Inc.

“We selected DuPont as our exclusive packaging partner to benefit not only from their depth of experience but also their extensive reach into the consumer products packaging industry. “

PowerMe Mobile Adopts Scanbuy's 2D Barcode Scanning Technology

Because DuPont, the world's largest consumer good packaging company licensed Scanbuy's interactive 2d barcode technology, and will be the exclusive marketer of their camera phone technology, I expect to see more companies adopt Scanbuy's 2d code scanning platform.

PowerMe Mobile Adopts Scanbuy's 2D Barcode Scanning Technology

PowerMeMobile, the Lebanese mobile solutions provider has signed an agreement with Scanbuy, Inc., a global provider of mobile marketing solutions, to market Scanbuy's two-dimensional (2D) barcode scanning technology in the Middle East and Africa.

The patented technology consists of a client application, called ScanLife,™ that is downloaded on mobile phones allowing the end user to read EZcodes, Scanbuy's patented 2D bar codes.

"Within the next 24 months we expect 2D barcodes to become ubiquitous as marketers and media deploy codes on products and marketing materials worldwide", said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy, Inc.

Bassam Tuéni, CEO of PowerMe Mobile, said: "We are proud to be associated with Scanbuy and its outstanding scan technology. We feel that it will enhance our solutions and offerings to the operators in the MENA region."

Recently PowerMe Mobile signed a content supply agreement with Universal Music Group, the world's largest music label. This could open the door to scanning all of Universal's physical items (Cds, movie posters etc) with a camera phone.

Scanbuy And Syscan Digital Announce Strategic Partnership To Market 2D Mobile Barcodes To Chinese Mobile Carriers

Scanbuy, Inc.,a global provider of mobile marketing solutions, and Syscan Digital Systems ), a leading provider of 2D barcode solutions in China, today announced a strategic and long term partnership to market a range of 2D barcode services to mobile carriers in China.

Syscan Digital’s CM (Compact Matrix) and GM (Grid Matrix) barcodes were approved as China National Industrial Standard by the Ministry of Information Industry in 2006, and makes it the first Chinese owned national standard.

The strategic partnership will create a solution combining technologies of both companies around 2D barcode services including: mobile ticketing and couponing, anti-fraud solutions and media codes such as WAP, SMS, or vCard codes that provide consumers with quick and simple access to digital content. The combined platform will be promoted by Chinese mobile operators and will leverage the respective strengths of both companies.

Lon Chen, Chief Executive Officer, Syscan Digital System Ltd. said "We chose to partner with Scanbuy because they are the leader in making it easy for consumers to fully utilize enhanced services via their wireless phones".


China is the world’s largest mobile communications market and Syscan Digital, with their expertise, relationships and commitment to innovation, is the clear choice as a partner to bring mobile 2D barcodes to this burgeoning market,” said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy, Inc.

Scanbuy entered into a partnership last year with Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone manufacturer, to preload Scanbuy’s 2D barcodes application on Nokia’s multimedia handsets. The Scanbuy technology allows users of the Nokia S60 handsets to recognize and decode barcodes on products, media and advertising and to link directly to content and services from their handsets.

ScanBuy also signed an exclusive agreement with DuPont Packaging to place interactive 2D barcodes on packaging.

This partnership between Syscan Digital and Scanbuy, two recognized leaders in their fields, is another step toward the adoption of 2D mobile marketing technology in the fast growing Chinese mobile market.

Founded in year 2001, Syscan Digital was led by a group of industry veterans and has strong intellectual property portfolio with over 100 patents filed in China and internationally. Syscan Digital made the “Best Mobile Barcode Solution Provider” in China in 2006.

Scanbuy Uses Mobile Phone To Inform Consumers

I have talked about Scanbuy and their barcode and mobile phone application frequently on PP.

They have kept their company's focus on retrieving information on the Internet from physical world objects using a cell phone, and are doing a fantastic job of educating the public about physical world connection.

I wouldn't be surprised to see them introduce new features besides price comparison for this platform.

For example. What if one of the features is a coupon option. Put in barcode of a product and see if that brand has a coupon. Maybe make the consumer watch a 5 second clip in order to get the coupon. Would you try it for the more expensive items in the store?


From Chicago Tribune Scanbuy turns phone into shopping consultant

This Nokia S60 with Scanbuy Shopper software, a free download from Scanbuy of New York (www.scanbuy.com), gathers price comparisons, reviews and product info from the Web.

Whether you're pricing a jug of Tide detergent or an LCD television, Scanbuy Shopper consults PriceGrabber.com, Shopping.com and Amazon.com, among others, before displaying information on your cell phone's screen.

All you do is activate the Scanbuy Shopper program, then use the phone's touch pad to enter the product's eight-digit bar code found on the desired item's box. It works only with Java-enabled services from providers T-Mobile, Cingular and Sprint.

(Depending on the plan, each call will cost about 25 cents. Consult Scanbuy's Web site for a list of compatible phones.)

What other services (consumer, advertiser) you would like to see that involve a barcode besides price comparison or ordering?

Do you think mobile marketing companies will be coming to Scanbuy to use some of these applications?

Can you see how major brand would license this application to interact with their consumers?

ScanBuy Offers Store Scanner

This is one of the physical world connection companies I interviewed at CTIA. What the article fails to mention is that ScanBuy has a new CEO.

Jonathan Bulkeley, the former CEO of Barnes and Noble, is now running ScanBuy.

From Red Herring Cameraphone as store scanner

Turning mobile camera phones into barcode scanners in the palms of consumers is hardly a no-brainer. It’s easy to imagine faster technologies, such as RFID scanners in phones, supplanting ScanBuy’s innovation, which relies on a steady hand and a focused lens.

But ScanBuy does have an advantage. The New York City-based company is zeroing in on markets like the United States and Latin America, places where mobile phones are used for little more than voice and text.



ScanBuy is not profitable yet, but it has filed 25 patents. It was that proprietary technology that lured Hudson Ventures.

To win a toehold in this emerging market, ScanBuy is starting out with a comparison-shopping product. ScanBuy has hooked up with engines like PriceGrabber so that its consumers can check online prices while browsing in brick-and-mortar stores.

In Spain, Mr. Attia has struck a deal with CodiLink , a mobile marketing firm that counts companies like Audi and H&M as clients. CodiLink has licensed ScanBuy’s technology and is building mobile marketing campaigns around it.

Although he can’t name any of Codi-Link’s clients, Mr. Chesser says one of them is a grocery chain that plans to offer mobile coupons that can be redeemed in any of its 50,000 stores

Before I get a flurry of complaints, YES an add-on lens is STILL required to read a 1D barcode with their application.

They are doing demos with carriers in the Far East and in Latin America.

The thing I found most interesting, is that ScanBuy brought in someone that experienced the shift from bricks to clicks. He was right in the middle of the electronic transformation. He agreed that this technology, industry, concept will be huge.

I will post my summary of what I think is happening with PWC and mobile marketing shortly.

ScanBuy's ScanLife Now Available for Download through The iPhone App Store

The leading physical world connection player is now also available on the iPhone.

Scanbuy, a global leader in mobile marketing solutions, announced today that its ScanLife 2D barcode application is now available for free on the iPhone App Store. Scanbuy's technology uses the phone’s camera to give users an instant connection to information, without needing to search by keyword or type in a lengthy URL.

Individuals can also create and scan Personal EZcodes as links to their blogs or networking sites by registering an account at www.scanlife.com.

ScanLife can launch any URL address and with Wi-Fi access, the application can also send a user directly to an iTunes page to preview and purchase a specific song or to watch a video on YouTube™.

iPhone users can download the free ScanLife software from the App Store, while users on other phones can text SCAN to 43588 or go to www.getscanlife.com on their mobile browser.

In addition to the iPhone, the ScanLife handset software is compatible with hundreds of other phones on every major mobile operating system including BREW, Java, Symbian, Palm, Blackberry, and Windows Mobile.

How does ScanBuy's ScanLife compare to NeoMedia's code scanning application?
According to Scanbuy:
From a code creation standpoint:

- Unlike Scanbuy, a Neomedia user cannot edit the code at a later time – if they want the code to link to something different, they have to make a new one

- The longer the URL, the bigger it needs to be (takes up more space) or the more dense it needs to be (which limits how many phones can read it). A Facebook URL is about 35 characters long. EZcodes can always be the same size – ½ inch.

From a scanning standpoint:

- Do you want 10 million people to be able to read your code, or do you want over 60 million?
ScanLife can be downloaded on 75 other handsets (beyond the iPhone) and the Neoreader mainly works with Smartphones only – and does not work on the Blackberry.

- The ScanLife iPhone app also has a History and Favorites function so people can go back to previous scans.

Want to see how ScanLife works?

Founded in 2000, Scanbuy has a strong and growing intellectual property base in 2D barcode technology. The company's investors include Longworth Venture Partners, Masthead Venture Partners and Hudson Ventures.

More on Scanbuy.

MediaTek Embeds Scanbuy's 2D Barcode Technology

Yesterday the buzz was about the Mobile Codes Consortium and how mobile players were meeting about how to get Physical World Connection (PWC) adopted. I will have more comments on this in a bit.

Meanwhile, instead of talking about adoption, one PWC player was actually doing it.

This agreement should allow quicker (PWC) adoption from handset manufacturers.

New York, NY, February 28, 2007- Scanbuy, Inc . (www.scanbuy.com), a global provider of wireless commerce solutions, today announced a strategic partnership with MediaTek, Inc., a global leader in consumer and communications IC solutions, to embed Scanbuy 2D barcode technology in MediaTek’s platform marketed to handset manufacturers globally.

MediaTek, a global supplier of wireless communication chipsets and the leading supplier in the greater China market, will offer the Scanbuy barcode technology to all its handsets customers throughout the world. Several key customers are in testing phase already with the technology.

“MediaTek’s global handset customer base makes them an ideal partner,” said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy, Inc. “We’re pleased MediaTek is committed to bringing the advanced functionality of our proven barcode-capture technology to their handset partners worldwide.”

“Barcode capturing technology will definitely be an important solution for the mobile world,” said Randolf Wu, Operational Officer of Trilogy Technology. “We’re extremely pleased to form the cooperation partnership between MediaTek and Scanbuy.” Trilogy Technology serves as Scanbuy’s representative in Taiwan.

Serving as a cooperative partner with mainland China's largest cell phone brands, JiChang Hsu, V.P. Wireless Communications BU MediaTek, Inc. said, “We have seen increasing demand from our handset customers for barcode capture technology and we chose Scanbuy as a partner because of their state of the art technology and commitment to customer support”.

ScanBuy Gets New Mobile Bar Code Patents As Sprint Adopts Their ScanLife Platform

Scanbuy, a global leader in mobile 2D bar code and marketing solutions, today announced the approval of seven patents which cover a variety of elements relating to its integrated ScanLife Code Registry and Management platform.

Officially granted in 2007, each of the new patents enables a user’s mobile device to decipher 2D codes and deliver digital content through a server gateway, offering the most convenient way for mobile devices to access information from the physical world.

The patents cover new methods of processing and enhancing bar code images captured by a digital camera connected to a mobile device.

The state-of-the-art ScanLife Code Registry and Management platform has been deployed successfully in France, Spain, the Philippines, China and the United States.

AllTel is now listed as a carrier for ScanBuy's ScanLife too.

In addition, take a look at how Sprint has adopted Scanbuy's mobile bar code reading platform ScanLife, in their new PhoneIQ application. Expect more EZcodes in/on major publications soon.

What this really means.

Because Dupont selected Scanbuy as its exclusive provider for the 21st Century Barcode, (microEZ) mobile marketing companies will be able to offer brands the ability to connect their product/package with a consumer using a camera phone and a 2d barcode.

Every Coke can, cereal box, DVD package etc will act like a physical world hyperlink when a camera phone scans the 2d code on the packaging.

In my opinion, physical world hyperlinks have the ability to revive retail stores.

By adding a 2d code to packaging, the Internet comes into a retail store, offering brands lots of exciting options.

2D barcodes, or in this case EZCodes, will compliment keywords as the commodity for Internet advertising.

ScanLife® can be used with all major 2D barcode protocols including QR, DataMatrix; and codes made especially for camera phone like Scanbuy’s EZcode™.

Some exciting developments are expected from ScanBuy shortly. Readers might want to download the ScanLife barcode reading application on the phone to take see.

To get the ScanLife mobile barcode application simply text SCAN to 70734 or go to www.scanlife.com and enter your phone number.

It is clear that the ScanLife is becoming the standard mobile bar code reading application in the U.S.

See why Microsoft's Don Dodge picked ScanBuy as a Company To Watch?

Scanbuy Receives Two More Mobile Barcode Patents

Microsoft's Don Dodge was spot on when he said Scanbuy was a "Company To Watch in 2007"

This physical world connection company has spent the last couple years marketing a disruptive technology, camera phones and barcodes. In the mean time they continue to build on their intellectual property portfolio.

New York, NY, February 8, 2007- Scanbuy, Inc., (www.www.scanbuy.com) a global provider of wireless commerce solutions today announced it has been granted two U.S. patents around a mobile device and a barcode.

The first patent addresses a method for decoding and analyzing barcodes using a mobile device to transmit and access information via WAP, SMS, or MMS. The second is focused on a system that provides an algorithm designed to enhance images of barcodes to facilitate the decoding process.

US Patent No. 7,156,311, describing a system for decoding barcodes using a mobile device like a cell phone equipped with a digital camera, uses software located on the mobile device to enhance the barcode image and subsequently decode the barcode information. The software uses the camera to read the barcode, transmit the decoded information to a server in multiple ways such as WAP, SMS, or MMS, and then connects the device via a wireless network to the corresponding media content and/or information.

U.S. patent No. 7,168,621 named “section based algorithm for image enhancement”, provides a process for enhancing images of barcodes that can compensate for many shortcomings of camera-equipped mobile devices, allowing many more images captured by camera-phones to be decoded, and as a result enhances users’ decoding experience.

“The patents we’ve been granted demonstrate the depth and strength of Scanbuys, ever growing, IP portfolio, and, more importantly, help to position Scanbuy as the partner of choice for handset manufacturers, carriers, content providers and advertisers” said Jonathan Bulkeley, Chief Executive Officer of Scanbuy, Inc.

Yesterday Nokia agreed to embed Scanbuy's barcode scanning application on their phones.

In my opinion, these guys are taking a close look at Scanbuy. I will elaborate why in an upcoming post.

The physical world connection puzzle pieces are coming together.

pwc ScanBuy Interview

Can you briefly describe what Scanbuy and Scanzoom offer to consumers and corporations.

In a nutshell, the unique working bridge between the real world and the Internet world.

Scanbuy’s technology is based on an extremely robust and protected barcode scanning software for camera phone. We want to link these two worlds because both brings a amazing user experience to consumers and businesses. You keep the touch and feel of the product from the retailer store and the benefits of the Internet for the information (price, comments, comparison, etc), everything you could not get from the retailer.

Scanbuy is the company, Optical Intelligence is the technology and ScanZoom is our brand for the consumer offer. We already offer a limited version of our mobile gateway to consumer through our dedicated web site ScanZoom .

OP3 is a partner representing Scanbuy’s technology in its region, focusing on integration of our technology in Fortune 1000 and mobile operators.
What makes us different is our past, our present and our future. We come from the applications development in the barcode scanning, we understand the camera phone decoding complexity and focus on a complete offering turnkey solution for all segments interested in this technology.

What is the biggest obstacle your company and this industry is facing?

Our knowledge is technology. We are a butch of geeks called Early Adopters tired to wait the day operators will understand the magic between this new generations of devices. Those new phones have an eye. They see what you see, what you want, what you desire. They can tell you in snap what is this product about. It is time it is happening. It is time mobile operators engaged in what we called the ScanCommerce industry and provide a real service to their consumers. Can you believe we still have to learn to type of this little keyboard to access a product online? Our biggest obstacle is TIME but we are getting there.

Corporations or consumers, who are you catering your business to?

We come from the B2B. We work with companies that want to provide a simple – stupid proof- application to their users. I don’t think a mobile phone is dedicated to a business or consumer anymore, it is everybody’s life. You have a wallet, you also have ALWAYS a phone with you. Out target market is everyone who could see a barcode around him… which means everyone!

What is taking service providers so long to implement this?

First, understanding the benefits of the technology. Second the complexity of the backend with a barcoded database. Third the consumer behaviors aspect. Fourth, the business model. It is new. We are like the early 90’s for the search engine. The business model is not clear for everyone yet but the need is there!

Has the search engine industry recognized how your product , and this new industry, will be the catalyst for mobile marketing? (ie. Have any search engines contacted you about any business relationships?)

Of course, it is a no-brainer for most search engines and comparison engines to link with our technology. I would refer to the 60 minutes about Google
Google 60 Minutes .

“And you take that device and you wand it over the product code, and you see comparison prices from Google of three other stores that are within a mile, OK? That’s power. That’s search. But no one has quite figured out that. That’s also the future.”
Linking the physical world to the Internet using what the most common link: the barcode!

When do we see the ability to click on a barcode/2d code and purchase/retrieve info happening?

An additional 2 years before it is common user experience. Million phones are already in production with our technology. By the time they will be on the market, you can count on 2 years with hundred of applications available.

Every company has at least one, what is your biggest fear.

Growing too fast. From 5 years of difficult time, I hope we will have time to solidify our offer and time to grow efficiently. Offers are there for acquisition. You don’t know Scanbuy yet. Let us take the time to make it a commodity on every phone before we become a little piece of a large group.

If you could land one specific customer/client, who would it be?

Nokia! This company is too big.

Does Scanbuy have an application that can read RFID tags?

We are linking today two worlds based on what is the most known codes in the world. You don’t need to explain a barcode to a Chinese, English or American consumers. You don’t need to translate it either. Today it is a barcode solution, tomorrow it will be based on EPC. Our research team already have a very interesting set of applications for those who wants to jump to the RFID but reality is when you start an RFID project, nowadays there is a high probability your project will end up based on barcode At least it is our experience in this domain today. Cost, implementation, etc

If you had to sum up Scanbuy in one sentence, it would be.

The world will become your showroom! Get ready!

Some of the pluses I see. It looks like the application is geared toward consumers. A new technology will get adopted faster if consumers want it, not if it is pushed on them. It’s available now to download. It seems like ScanBuy is geared toward the consumer with their app.

To understand why technologies take off faster with consumer demand versus corporate, I recommend reading Brand Hijack by Alex Wipperfurth.

More options have to be offered than price comparison though. A question I would like to know is that when I click on a barcode with ScanZoom do I only get a price comparison service, or what else can be offered.

All of these companies face a similar problem, getting the program on the phone. That’s the biggest hurdle I see for adoption. A new technology can’t get marketing buzz if people can’t “play” with it.

I like Olivier Attia’s comment about this technology being similar to the search engine in the 90’s. Initially search engines were neat sites, then advertisers realized the search engine would be their main platform for advertising. I see this pattern again w/ barcode recognition.

A Tale Of Two Physical World Connectors

Two physical world connection companies...........going in opposite directions?

I have talked about Scanbuy numerous times and their application that allows a camera phone to link to the Internet via 2d bar code. Two major announcements today in the PWC space have me wondering if a clear leader is emerging.

Scanbuy, Inc. , a global provider of wireless commerce solutions, today announced the recent hiring of industry veteran Jonathan Bulkeley as Chief Executive Officer. The company also announced that it completed $9 million in Series B financing. Longworth Venture Partners, Masthead Venture Partners and Hudson Venture Partners led the round, with participation from existing angel investors.

Bulkeley was previously the CEO of barnesandnoble.com, growing sales from $71 million to over $200 million, and overseeing its IPO, which at the time was the largest Internet IPO in history. Prior to bn.com, Bulkeley served as Managing Director of AOL's joint venture with Bertelsmann Online in the U.K. and as AOL’s Vice President of Business Development in the U.S

Bulkeley currently sits on the Board of Directors of the Readers Digest Association, and Spark Networks, PLC. He also served on the Board of Directors of IGN Entertainment which was sold to News Corporation last year.

The funds will escalate growth of Scanbuy’s go-to-market efforts, extend its standard 1D and 2D bar code technology leadership in mobile marketing

Opposite directions? ........

Scanbuy's announcement comes on the same day that the other major U.S. Physical World Connection player NeoMedia Technologies, announces that their CEO, President and Board member Charles Jensen resigned.

The company also announced a series of cost-cutting measures, including across-the-board salary reductions for the company's senior-level executives.

Going on 3 years, NeoMedia has been involved in a patent infringment suit against Scanbuy.

"We are seeing huge growth in the mobile marketing arena worldwide and Scanbuy is the clear leader in making it easy for consumers to fully utilize these enhanced services via their wireless phones," said Steve Smith of Masthead Venture Partners.

"We are thrilled to have Jonathan Bulkeley leading the Scanbuy team. His experience, vision and credibility are exactly what the company and the industry need to bring this technology to the mass market," said Nilanjana Bhowmik, partner at Longworth Venture Partners.

It appears there has been a dramatic shift in the physical world connection playing field.

The ponder in me wonders if innovation instead of litigation would have allowed quicker adoption.

Thoughts comments?

ScanBuy Getting Press

From Chicago tribune.com ScanBuy aiming at cameraphones

ScanBuy wants to turn your camera phone into the smartest shopper you know. Say you're in Neiman-Marcus shopping for yet another pair of flip-flops but you're pretty sure you can get them cheaper somewhere else.

I just don't see price comparison being the big ticket for physical world connection. Will you really click on those flip-flops and do a price compare? You're in Nedless Markup already, you're not price conscious.

Clicking on a barcode and getting offers on other products made by the flip-flop co, that might be a different story. Click on a Jimmy Buffet CD to get a ringtone, but do a price compare on the CD?

Why will advertisers get behind a service that minimizes their margins? Ask yourself next time you're shopping, "would I really go to another store to save x amount for this?"

ScanBuy is one of my physical world connection companies.

This is great technology, but in my opinion there are better applications to come from it.


Whip out your ScanBuy-enabled camera phone and take a picture of the flip-flops' bar code and wait a few moments: ScanBuy will tell you the name of the store where you can get the same flip-flops at a lower price, on the Internet.

Just before press time, we received a ScanBuy-enabled phone here in the dank, dark depths of Tribune Tower, so we haven't been able to test the technology in the real world yet. But something with such a high coolness factor deserves the Tribune twice-over, so look for our review soon.

Vivo Adopts Scanbuy's ScanLife Mobile Bar Code Platform

Another major wireless carrier adopts Scanbuy's mobile bar code reading application.

Scanbuy, a global leader in mobile 2D barcode and marketing solutions, announced today that Vivo, Brazil's largest mobile telecom operator, will support its ScanLife platform and become the first mobile operator in Latin America to utilize 2D barcodes.

Vivo, a joint venture between Telefonica and Portugal Telecom, is the largest mobile telecommunications operator in the Southern Hemisphere.



Vivo chose Scanbuy's ScanLife platform after an extensive bidding process for a completely integrated solution combining client and server applications. Scanbuy has partnered with EverMobile to deliver the ScanLife solution in Brazil.

The ScanLife platform has also been deployed in France, Spain, the Philippines, China and the United States. Several other markets are expected to launch in 2008.

How much longer before we start seeing the 21st Century Bar Code?

Reality TV Show Uses Scanbuy's 2D Codes

Physical World Connection (PWC) player Scanbuy has updated their website and announced a PWC application for a French reality TV show.


Scanbuy’s EZcode is being used on the popular French primetime TV show “Treasure Hunt” (modeled on the U.S. “Amazing Race".

The “Le Carte aux Tresors” application is a clever—but decidedly non-mainstream—application for 2D codes. The real benefit of this weekly television program is its consumer education value! For the entire season, French TV viewers (in any week, ~20% of the French population) are exposed to EZcode, how to scan using a cameraphone, information/content discovery, and the application’s ease-of-use



Link to video

Scanbuy is a leading global provider of mobile marketing solutions that use the camera phone as the link between the physical and digital worlds. Scanbuy’s 2D barcode capture technology is revolutionizing the way carriers, handset manufacturers and marketers around the world provide information and services to consumers on their mobile devices.

See how the mobile world is using Scanbuy today.

Mobile Bar Code Scanbuy Receives More VC Funding

Just after hooking up with Sprint for a mobile barcode campaign, Scanbuy receives more VC funding.

From GoMo News Mobile visual barcode company Scanbuy gets 6.8 million USD Series B 1 investment

Scanbuy just received 6.8 Million USD in VC money an internal round of initial and existing investors.

When DuPont announced they would be placing Scanbuy's 2d mobile code on packaging, the 21st Century Barcode was created.

2D Barcodes To Take Giant Leap Forward

Another respected technology publication realizing Physical World Connection is coming and highlighting one of the players.

From Guardian Unlimited Mobile Phone Hyperlinks For The Real World

The world of the so-called 2D barcode is nearly upon us. After several false dawns, hyperlinks for the physical world are becoming a reality, thanks to mobiles with higher resolution cameras and the emergence of 3G high-speed connectivity.

ScanBuy, a New York-based provider of 2D barcode capture technology, has signed a deal with Nokia to embed its software into the mobile manufacturer's S60 and S40 models - primarily in China, a country with 500m mobile phone users. And global packaging company DuPont is offering to print the codes on to its customers' products using ScanBuy's technology.

These more sophisticated versions of the traditional barcodes (universal product codes, or UPCs) used in retailing can be scanned by cameraphones and converted into text, images or video. They can simply contain information - up to 1MB in some cases - or act as web links, making the hitherto tricky process of surfing the net via mobile as easy as "point and click".

Barcelona-based Codilink is selling 20,000 2D barcode cinema tickets and discount vouchers a week, having licensed ScanBuy's technology. Codilink managing director Ben Chesser says: "Within one-and-a-half to two years, early adopters will be doing this regularly. It takes time to build awareness, but this technology is finally ready for take-off."

One drawback preventing widespread adoption has been the lack of standards in a fragmented and highly competitive mobile phone market. Few consumers have been bothered enough to download decoder software on to their phones.

The advantage of ScanBuy's proprietary software is that it can read any of the main barcode protocols, such as QR, mainly used in Japan; Data Matrix, mainly used in Europe; and EZcode, ScanBuy's code designed specifically for VGA cameraphones. And once more mobiles are shipped with decoder software built in, the mobile web will take a giant leap forward.

Comparison Shopping With Camera Phone

While I applaud the major media for exposing Scanbuy and the physical world connection, I wish they would use another example from it besides comparison shopping.

From Christian Science Monitor A new way to shop by phone

Many times, after returning home with my purchase, I discover (thanks to an ad in the newspaper or an Internet search) that I paid too much.

Lo and behold, that technology now exists. It's called Scanbuy Shopper. And some very smart people are suggesting that it has a very bright future that will make many retailers very, very nervous.

According to the New York company's website ( www.scanbuy.com), Scanbuy is a technology that "enables camera phones to capture and immediately decode printed or electronically displayed bar codes." Currently it works best with books, electronic equipment, and CDs.

When you're in a store and find an item of interest, simply take a picture of its bar code using an Internet-capable cellphone with a built-in camera. Then connect to the Web. (You don't have to take a picture.

Instead, you can just punch the bar-code numbers into the phone.) Scanbuy checks prices at comparison-shopping websites such as PriceGrabber.com and Amazon.com's Marketplace. It then sends you information on the best prices.

But as I mentioned earlier, some people see bigger things in Scanbuy's future, particularly working with the search industry's 800-pound gorilla, Google

Scanbuy Compares More Than Prices With Barcode

Mission Impossible III uses Scanbuy for mobile marketing.

From RedandBlack Camera phones to aid shoppers

A new technology now stands to eliminate the frustrations of comparison shopping.

The company Scanbuy, Inc., has developed software that enables camera phone users to snap a picture of an item’s barcode, which then cues the phone to launch an application to search the Internet for the lowest prices at nearby retailers or online.

In Spain or the United Kingdom, camera phone users contemplating whether Tom Cruise’s upcoming movie really does provide all the thrills and explosive action it promises can scan a barcode located on a “Mission Impossible III” movie poster.

From this scan, users will have the movie’s trailers, reviews and even the option of buying tickets all at their fingertips.

Scanbuy’s technology also has the ability to reveal the history of many items.

Scanbuy recently introduced Scanbuy Coupons.


Coupons and Tickets can be ordered through multiple means such as SMS, USSD, barcode capture.

Barcode Coupons and Tickets can be sent through SMS (EMS or Picture Mail), MMS, WAP Push, Personal WAP account, or even managed through a dedicated Client App

Recognizing the fact many in the United States still do not have camera-equipped cell phones, Attia’s company will launch an application this May that will allow users to simply type in the barcode number to get the same information