CyberMedia launches sensor-based print ads -Governance Now

CyberMedia launches sensor-based print ads

An application on Internet-enabled device with camera will be needed

PTI | March 7, 2011

Publishing house Cybermedia India today announced commercial launch of sensor-based print advertisements in India which will use new Quick Response (QR) code technology to connect print advertisement with a web link. Any viewer of print advertisement will have to point camera of his GPRS or web enabled device towards a two dimensional QR code printed along with ad. On sensing the QR code, the viewer will be directed to web link (hyperlink) to display content as desired by the advertiser. "QR code will make print interactive. CyberMedia had been tracking development of QR codes since long. We decided to commercially launch QR codes when telecom operators start rolling out 3G services so that experience of connecting to web is smooth," said Prasanto K Roy, President and chief editor, ICT division, CyberMedia. Roy claimed Cybermedia to be the first publishing house in India to commercially launch QR code based advertisement. For sensing and decoding QR code, a viewer will have to download an application on Internet-enabled device with camera, which can be a mobile phone, an iPad or a netbook. After downloading this application, the viewer will have to fit image of QR code within the camera range. Once the application senses QR code, the viewer will be automatically directed to web link which may contain video, more details about the product, a discount voucher or any other message that an advertiser wants to convey to him. The distance between camera and QR code to sense the embedded message depends on the camera quality and size of QR code. CyberMedia has start putting QR codes in its PC Quest magazine from this month onward and will expand it rest of its publication by year end. At present, CyberMedia is not charging for putting QR codes in the advertisement. "If QR codes are developed by the advertisers , we will not charge anything. If they want to use our resources like designing , developing or hosting their advertisement material on our servers, then we they will have to pay," Roy said. Roy mentioned that CyberMedia will initiate talks with other companies in the print industry to promote use of QR codes and develop eco-system for it. QR codes are being seen as replacement of Bar codes as they can store up to 7089 characters compared to limit of 20 characters in bar codes. Also there are limited number of Bar codes available while an application can generate infinite number of QR codes, Roy said.

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