Compatibility Key to Success of 2D Barcodes

People often assume that the easiest system is the best.  Look at how Google approached email — they made it compatible with everyone else’s systems and therefore experienced widespread adoption.

The same is true of retail store scanners — at checkout all barcodes are compatible. If you look across the traditional barcode marketplace, there are a few key points of commonality.  In the U.S., standard UPC codes on products are a great way for brands to enter the market without publishing a new code for each product line. Quick Response (QR) codes, widely used across Asia, and data matrix, a big code type being used in Europe, are also built on a free, open standard that anyone can access.

2D barcodes can deliver broad reach, targeting and ROI, but only if there is an open, standard ecosystem built around them.  Some would argue that this is not needed.  At the most basic level, marketers can take a simple URL, pack it into a barcode and enable consumers to immediately go to that URL for promotions or discounts.  However, this approach can leave them susceptible to interoperability issues as well as security vulnerabilities.

It was not until 2002 that text messages could finally be shared between major wireless carriers in the U.S. The text messaging market never would have gotten off the ground with every mobile operator creating their own version. Likewise, in order to ensure the success of 2D barcodes, there needs to be compatibility among systems and an infrastructure that ensures safe and secure transactions.

At Neustar, our company’s roots lie in acting as a neutral party for these types of interactions.  Neustar offers directory and clearinghouse services to telecommunications service providers and also administers the U.S. Common Short Codes directory, which provides special numbers for SMS and offers mobile messaging services to wireless carriers and marketers. Think of the voting that goes on for American Idol – that’s short codes in action. For 2D barcodes, Neustar has created a barcode clearinghouse that aims to unify all readers and all formats so that any user, on any device, can read and use any barcode.

We recently launched a Mobile Barcode Pilot Program based on open standards.  This global pilot program is designed to show interoperability among all members of the mobile barcode ecosystem via Neustar’s third-party central clearinghouse and registry services.

From a macro perspective, this approach makes a lot of sense. There are over one and a half million brands out there looking for ways to improve customer loyalty by more deeply interacting with the consumer.  At the same time, you’ve got hundreds of mobile operators talking to these brands who are reaching out to their customers using codes.   With a clearinghouse approach, we can simplify these connections through one contract and make it much easier for all of those involved to interact.

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