NeoReader Now Available on Android Platform

2010: The Year 2D Barcodes Breakthrough - NeoReader now available on Android platform.

NeoMedia Technologies, the global leader in mobile barcode scanning solutions, is making its barcode scanning application - NeoReader® - available on all camera-equipped Android smartphones. The NeoReader will transform any Android handset into a barcode scanner providing instant access to mobile content by clicking on 2D barcodes.

By the end of last year (2009) there were approximately 18 separate models of Android handsets available worldwide, and by 2012 Gartner anticipates that Android will become the world's second most popular smartphone platform, second only to Symbian (Nokia OS) enabled handsets. At last count there were in excess of 20,000 apps available for the Android showing that it is steadily giving Apple's App Store a run for its money.

Iain McCready, CEO of NeoMedia, commented: "Bringing the NeoReader to the high growth Android platform brings us ever closer to mass market adoption of 2D barcodes. Android's commitment to the OHA (Open Handset Alliance) matches NeoMedia's own objective of achieving open standards in order to drive rapid market growth and consumer adoption. With the ubiquity of the mobile web and the plethora of emergent mobile technology applications, there has never been a better time to get involved in this exciting marketplace."

The NeoReader is a universal barcode scanning application and has set the standard for other apps like Microsoft Tag, RedLaser & ShopSavvy to follow. The NeoReader reads all standard 1D and 2D barcode symbologies – QR, Data Matrix, Aztec, UPC and EAN – so users won’t need multiple barcode readers installed on their phone.

Enter get.neoreader.com into your mobile browser and the Android version will automatically download to compatible handsets. Coming soon to the Android Market.

Who Will Be First To License NeoMedia's Patents

The mobile code ecosystem has been a buzz ever since NeoMedia Technologies announced last month that the United States Patent and Trademark Office had ruled in favor of NeoMedia in the reexamination of its U.S. Patent No. 6,199,048 -- System And Method For Automatic Access Of A Remote Computer Over A Network.

NeoMedia currently has 30 active patents spanning 13 countries, with 29 additional patents pending. These patents cover various linkage methods including: Barcodes, RFID, Mag Stripe, Voice, and other machine readable and keyed entry identifiers.

According to NeoMedia's CEO Iain McCready, "A couple of competitors in the USA have already asked us for a free license but we can’t accept that. We are a business and so are they. In a reasonable manner, and at a fair price, we want to move forward with this. I am open to discussion and we want to be seen as fair. We want the whole mobile barcode market to succeed and the license fee model is tried and tested and it works. It can be as simple or as difficult as people want it to be and we aim to keep it simple. We have been working very very closely with both the GSMA and the OMA, and by being connected, the introduction of a license model can and will only succeed."

With the Google backed ShopSavvy and CompareEverywhere barcode applications making strong headway, and the recently launched Microsoft Tag reader carving out its niche, the mobile code ecosystem is quickly attracting major industry players.

Last week France's Mobile Tag announced that former NeoMedia CEO William "Chip" Hoffman had joined the company to head up their US operations. Mobile Tag uses mobile barcode technology patented by NeoMedia, and makes for a very likely patent licensee. Likewise with Google, Microsoft, Scanbuy and Upcode.

In keeping with its vision and commitment to developing an interoperable global ecosystem, NeoMedia is licensing its technology to foster innovation in the creation of exciting new mobile barcode applications and services.

Is NeoMedia Technologies For Sale?

NeoMedia Technologies, the global leader in camera-initiated barcode transactions for mobile devices, released an 8-K SEC filing last Monday which alluded to the potential sale of the company.

The filing states that during the next 18 months NeoMedia's CEO Iain McCready can earn a commission of up to 2.5% of sales proceeds for selling the company if the sale price is not less than $45M, with a commission cap set at a $200M sale price.

However, that's not to say that Iain can't sell NeoMedia for more than $200M. He can. Especially with a favorable patent review by the USPTO anticipated later this year.

NeoMedia Technologies has a suite of twelve issued patents covering the core concepts behind linking the physical world to the electronic world dating back to 1995. These patents cover various linkage methods including: Barcodes, RFID, Mag Stripe, Voice, and Other machine readable and keyed entry identifiers.

These patents were first licensed by Digital Convergence for $100M in 2000 to facilitate the launch of the :CueCat.

In 2001, NeoMedia Technologies formed a strategic alliance with Symbol, now owned by Motorola, and signed a worldwide agreement which gave Symbol the right to grant licenses to itself and third parties under NeoMedia's intellectual property. Symbol would later offer to buy NeoMedia's valuable patent portfolio in 2002 for $150M. The offer was declined however in favor of further developing the IP and growing the patent portfolio as a core component of NeoMedia's long-term growth and market strategy.

In 2005, Virgin Entertainment and NeoMedia Technologies entered into an extended licensing agreement, which saw Virgin license NeoMedia's patents through 2016.

There were even strong rumors that Microsoft was interested in purchasing NeoMedia back in 2005.

Flash forward to today, mobile barcode reading is an everyday part of the popular culture in Japan and Korea. The technology is just now beginning to emerge in Europe with North America not too far behind. With so many companies entering the mobile code reading space, and looking to carve out their niche, NeoMedia has positioned itself well with it's extensive patent portfolio and barcode technology, and will bring tremendous value to anyone interested in acquiring the company.

NeoReader Featured On Google ZXing Website

NeoMedia Technologies and Gavitec AG - mobile digit, are pleased to announce that their co-developed code-reading application – NeoReader – designed to turn a camera phone into a universal 1D and 2D barcode scanner providing one-click access to mobile content, is featured on Google's ZXing website.

ZXing (pronounced "zebra crossing") is an open-source, multi-format 1D/2D barcode reader library implemented in Java. Google's goal is to support the decoding of QR Codes, Data Matrix, and the UPC family of 1D barcodes. It will provide clients for J2ME, J2SE, and Android.

According to Google's Senior Software Engineer and ZXing project owner, Sean Owen, "There are several great readers out there, and there are bits of open-source code already for decoding, but not both at the same time. We want everyone to have access to some great source code to play with, so we decided we'd try an experiment, and open up our in-progress effort. Maybe some of it will be useful to you -- maybe you can help improve it."

"Will this be the best reader ever? Well we hope it gets quite good. Things are far from perfect, and it's hard to top some of the great (native-code) readers out there. No, we primarily hope to provide a solid base of code from which people can derive other implementations, and to which people can submit new, better code. If this helps raise the quality of readers everywhere we've all done our job."

Based off the award winning Lavasphere technology developed in Germany by Gavitec, the NeoReader features NeoMedia's patented resolution technology combined with Gavitec's ultra-small footprint and platform independent algorithms. It is able to read and decipher all common non-proprietary 2D codes (Data Matrix, QR, Aztec, Maxi) as well as URL embedded 2D codes and all 1D UPC/EAN/Code 128 open source codes. The NeoReader supports direct and indirect code linking, which guarantees maximum interoperability with already existing platforms like 2D Data Matrix Semacodes, and Japanese QR links. This allows the user to click on a variety of codes with a single application installed on their mobile device.

The NeoReader ushers in and inaugurates a brand new era of innovative mobile enterprise and optical code reading solutions for the wireless industry. Visit get.neoreader.com to download the free application, and instantly transform your mobile phone into a universal code reader.