NeoMedia » mobilegroove

The positive response to my earlier recap of barcode milestones and reprint of my exclusive interview with Scanbuy, a major player in the space,

Just tying up loose ends and pinning down last interviews before I'm off to Barcelona for Mobile World Congress (MWC). If you haven't booked a video interview with me or Michelle Sklar, then best to start planning for CTIA in March because all the slots (over 200!) for coverage are full.

However, there are some limited sponsorship opportunities available allowing companies placement through in-video overlay, logos and other promotion formats. It's an excellent way to reach an audience of over 1 million viewers. (All MWC interviews will be aired on bnetTV’s website, as well as over 150 other web and social media sites (including MSG), that are part of bnetTV's larger partner network.

Regular readers will recall that one of my oldest and closest partners is bnetTV, the source for mobile industry interviews. I've conducted dozens of interviews on behalf of bnetTV (featured in the video player and playlist in the right-hand sidebar) at leading mobile industry events worldwide and will be joining with Michelle Sklar and the rest of the bnetTV team to film interviews during Mobile World congress (MWC). Companies lining up to take advantage of this editorial opportunity include: Nuance, Novarra, Out There Media, JumpTap GetJar (during the must-attend Showstoppers mini-event), Neomedia and InMobi, to name a few.

Companies and execs are still confirming filming times – so it's going to be a busy and exciting show indeed! We still have some slots available, so please contact Michelle ASAP (michelle@bnettv.com) to schedule an interview.

Back as promised with an exclusive podcast to connect the dots in the recent raft of announcements and get the inside track on Scanbuy strategy. Indeed, there are a lot of open questions since Scanbuy, a leader in mobile marketing solutions based on barcodes, surprised the industry in early April with the decision to make the specs for the company's proprietary EZcode 2D barcode symbology "globally available." What does this really mean and what structures will Scanbuy put in place to see this through? These are just a few of the questions I explore with Jonathan Bulkeley, Scanbuy CEO. (Personal thanks to David Javitch, Scanbuy VP of Marketing, for streamlining my request and arranging the podcast, the first such in-depth interview since the announcement.) To fully understand the significance of Scanbuy's decision, it's important to review the events and announcements that have effectively dealt companies up and down the mobile barcode business ecosystem (Scanbuy included) a new hand of cards. First came the decision in February by the United States Patent and Trademark Office to re-examine the patent claims filed by NeoMedia Technologies, a provider of barcode scanning solutions. The move prompted NeoMedia to push forward in March on a patent licensing program and tie up with other vendors (3GVision, Mobile Discovery, Mobile Tag, and NeuStar) in a pilot program based on open standards in a bid to show interoperability between the technologies out there and - more importantly - position NeuStar, a short code registry, as a central clearinghouse in the middle. More about this model and Jonathan's own take in the podcast.

My last post on 2D barcodes sparked an interesting debate on the recent CTIA white paper, a work-in-progress that - though a step in the right direction - prematurely calls a winner in the barcode battle, and patently fails to detail the contribution of each company/player in the emerging ecosystem. I am pleased at the amount (and quality) of feedback I received, both in the form of comments on MSG and in personal emails asking to take the discussion off-line, and overjoyed that companies have asked me to elaborate my arguments in a white paper, a proposition I am seriously considering. But today I can say the response to my post (and the observation that key stakeholders such as advertisers should be consulted at this stage) is finally complete. Scanbuy CEO, Jonathan Bulkeley - who has so far respectfully declined opportunities to formally respond to the CTIA white paper - has reached out to MSG to set the record straight and provide his side of the story.

This week I wrap up some of the most interesting interviews in my career. It's been over a month of collecting facts, figures and vision from 25+ mobile executives and luminaries, in-depth information that will be the foundation of the Netsize Guide 2009, which I am writing as we speak. Is convergence the end-game? Will mobile advertising foot the bill for mobile content and apps? What is the real value of location? How can companies remain relevant to their customers? Are mobile operators -well- outdated? These are just a few of the questions I have the freedom to explore in the guide with the full support of George Yaryura, Netsize Strategic Marketing Manager. Our goal: To co-create a highly accessible and valuable publication for mobile professionals and practitioners. I must keep the keep the details of these interviews confidential until the Netsize Guide is formally released at Mobile World Congress. But I can share my take of the megatrends that matter and the industry developments that merit a closer look. Top of my list is mobile barcodes.