QR code is starting to become popular in US. I just noticed one QR code in this month Wired magazine - typically more than 20 QR codes in Japanese magazines, but it is just a start of a new rising trend in US.

It seems QR code is currently getting popular in new areas like airline ticketing services using mobile devices than traditional publishing medium. A QR code encoded with boarding pass information is sent to a passenger’s handset and  then airport security scans the QR code for verification. According to the article in TechCrunch, the offerings of QR code ticketing service increased 1200% year-over-year. 1200% a year!

I am not interested nor impressed by this type of QR code usage - although it is a great service - which merely uses a fraction of what it can do and only uses one aspect of it - being able to encode some information to be scanned and verified by custom QR code readers. It’s not new.

I am more interested in making the QR code available everywhere and doing something interesting with the data in it. It is a huge opportunity for those of whom understand the current issue. The problem of the current QR code usage in Japan and US (although just started) is that no one is doing something really creative and the usage is too broad. If you scan a generic QR code on, for example, a magazine ad, it just redirects you to some websites for more information or for some coupons. Also people just don’t know what to expect by looking at it and even don’t have any clue which QR code readers to use… This is a root cause of the problem. There have been quite a lot of effort to create good and fast generic QR code readers, but not too much effort on doing something with the data encoded in it.

Thus, I predict the next big thing in QR code revolution would be “Branded QR Code”.  What I mean by “Branded” is this: if you look at Apple logo, you know exactly what to expect. Search ->Google, Social Network ->Facebook, Realtime ->Twitter, LBS -> Foursquare, PayPal -> Payment, etc.

One good example would be “PayPal Branded QR code” -> by looking at the QR code, people know what to expect - Payment.

It isn’t a question of if, but when and who.

 ”That said, with the growing number of actual revenue-making business deals, Foursquare will have to address this sooner rather than later. The point of every game is to win it. And sadly, where there’s a game, there’s a person willing to cheat at it.”

Click here for the article.

Here is my thought on this:Without knowing the latest development in GPS technology and just by reading publications out there, the technology is not ready yet due to the fact that currently the precision of civilian GPS is 65 feet, so it is hard for Foursquare to reliably use GPS to find out accurate customers’ locations. Given the situation, Foursquare might have to choose to go with something simple like dynamic QR codes at the venues where customers check in by scanning the QR codes with their mobile devices or a device to bump against with their mobile phones.

The challenging part with this approach would be obviously making it available everywhere, but if you look back at the history, that’s the way it is, until the technology is ready and massively available,  we need to find a solution from what we have now - of course, actively patenting currently-not-solvable ideas due to the current technology limitations for the future I am guessing the solution would be a hybrid model between GPS and QR code type validation, but I am hoping that Foursquare team come up with an innovative solution to surprise me and the world.

“Nooka is one of our favorite brands and these guys created a new way to try on a Nooka watch at home. By using augmented reality technologies – albeit technology that may not work quite yet – you can try on any watch just by putting on a specially coded bracelet. The system senses the position of your hand and lets the Nooka watch appear in 3D right on your wrist. It’s honestly an amazing idea and someone better patent it before Trojan and Victoria’s Secret get their hands on it.”

Click here for the article.

 “In 1854, the U.S. President made an offer for a large area of Indian land and promised a “reservation” for the Indian people. Chief Seattle’s reply, published below, has been described as the most beautiful and profound statement on the environment ever made.”