Sears First Out Of Gates With 2-D Bar Codes

Sears is the first major U.S. retailer to start a public trial of 2-D barcode technology. Efforts to implement retail 2-D bar codes are accelerating, with Sears becoming the first U.S. retailer to begin a public trial that started in mid-December at a store in Marietta, Georgia.

Sears’ name is now on a substantial list of top-tier U.S. retailers who have been seriously exploring the technology, including Best Buy, Gap, Target and Nordstrom. There are multiple vendors pushing the technology in the United States; Best Buy and Target are working with a company called StoreXperience, while Sears and others are talking with an outfit called ScanBuy.

At the National Retail Federation show in New York City this week, some retailers and consumer goods manufacturers discussed the 2-D efforts, almost all in exchange for an agreement that they not be quoted by name as most are considering similar trials.  The technique involves having a cell phone’s digital camera “look” at a small 2-D bar code on an advertisement, which launches an applet. A server interprets the bar code and the phone then launches a Web browser and deep-links to a page on that site, typically the Web site of the advertiser.

[Full Story by Evan Schuman at eweek.com]