Mobile Tag Licenses NeoMedia's Patents

NeoMedia Technologies and Mobile Tag, leaders in mobile barcode technology, announced a non-exclusive patent licensing agreement for machine readable mobile codes under NeoMedia’s patent portfolio. This is the first contract to be announced under NeoMedia’s recently launched licensing program.

NeoMedia’s objective is to create an open and interoperable 2D barcoding ecosystem which will create lucrative and compelling opportunities for all participants, including brands, advertising agencies and mobile operators. By licensing its technology, NeoMedia aims to foster innovation and competition to create exciting new applications and services that will appeal to consumers. This activity will unlock the potential of mobile barcoding to become an integral part of consumers’ daily lives.

This licensing deal enables Mobile Tag to engage consumer brands, advertising agencies, mobile operators and the OEMs that supply them with NeoMedia’s officially licensed U.S. patents. As a charter licensee, Mobile Tag, Inc. recognizes NeoMedia’s contributions to the industry and efforts to establish real world interoperability in the mobile barcode market. Both companies participated in the NeuStar sponsored interoperability pilot program at CTIA in March 2009, and this commercial licensing agreement shifts the marketplace from trial to practical reality.

NeoMedia and Mobile Tag, Inc. are committed to establishing an open operating environment. Licensing arrangements like this are the foundation needed to unify the marketplace and create the scale needed for consumer brands to invest in mobile barcoding as a key advertising channel. Mobile Tag, Inc. is the first company licensed to operate under NeoMedia’s Intellectual Property for indirect mobile barcoding solutions.

“This deal is a critical milestone for the industry and we’re grateful that Mobile Tag, Inc. stepped forward to work with us. It affirms that the market has realized the importance of creating a legitimate, licensed and open environment for all and I believe it marks the tipping point for rapid commercialization of mobile barcodes in the U.S.,” commented Iain McCready, CEO of NeoMedia.

“Mobile Tag, Inc. recognizes the innovation and capability enabled by the art captured in NeoMedia’s IP,” stated William J. Hoffman, CEO of Mobile Tag, Inc. “We are pleased to license with NeoMedia and believe it will spur innovation and adaptation of this technology on par with the explosion witnessed by SMS services earlier in this decade. Mobile machine readable codes will be mainstream in the U.S. just as they are in Japan, France and Poland where they are found on nearly 210 million phones. It is time to get on with it!”

“Mobile Tag focuses on delivery of carrier-grade client software and transaction infrastructure,” continued Hoffman, “while insuring brands, businesses and consumers who use that technology are pleased with the experience.”

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.

NeoMedia Appoints New CEO Iain McCready

NeoMedia Technologies, the global leader in camera-initiated barcode transactions for mobile devices, is pleased to announce the appointment of Iain McCready as CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors. Iain joins to take NeoMedia into the next phase of its growth and to be responsible for day-to-day operations and business strategy.

Outgoing CEO Chip Hoffman, who is moving on to new activities, will help Iain during the transition period.

Iain was previously employed as a consultant for NeoMedia and has extensive experience in successfully growing relevant technology businesses. Most recently, Iain spent three years driving the growth of Mobiqa, the world leader in mobile ticketing and mobile couponing solutions based on the creation, optimization, delivery and redemption of barcodes to mobile phones, from a start-up to the world leader in their field. As CEO, he rolled out the company's strategy worldwide, entered new markets and struck major deals with the biggest companies in their field, including Ticketmaster, Major League Baseball and Nokia.

Previously, Iain was Non-Executive Chairman of Scolocate Limited, a provider of co-location and managed services to the IT marketplace, specializing in IT architecture, design and planning, project management and implementation services. Prior to this, Iain was the Non-Executive Director of Concept Systems Limited, a leading supplier of advanced IT systems, solutions and service to the oil exploration and production industry, appointed to manage the business to a successful exit, which he achieved.

In 2003 Iain served as the Interim Chief Operating Officer at Hanon Solution Limited. Before that, he had an almost 20 year career at KSCL, which was Scotland's largest software house and developed customer care and billing applications for the world's leading mobile phone operators, now part of Convergys. Iain had held a number of roles at KSCL including Chief Operating Officer and Customer Services Director.

George O'Leary, board member said, "We are delighted to welcome Iain on board. Iain comes with direct experience and the proven ability to develop and execute business plans, establish companies internationally and build and lead teams. He was the natural choice for CEO. We have been particularly impressed with his ability to assess and assimilate business issues quickly. His extensive experience leading a top barcode and technology company will provide key direction in developing NeoMedia's strategy and driving the company forward."

Iain McCready said, "Having already worked with NeoMedia, I am looking forward to taking the reins and being operational from day one. At the forefront of a rapidly growing sector, the company's innovative products, exciting solutions and its intellectual property for the mobile market in particular offer impressive potential. I look forward to contributing to its future success."

OMA Update On Mobile Code Standards

The OMA recently published an April 2008 Technical Plenary Summary stating that a 2D barcode white paper has been completed and is currently in consistency review. The summary also noted that a requirements document has been started with initial sections populated.

Last December the Mobile Codes Consortium (MC2) announced it had carried out initiatives which lead to GSM Association (GSMA) and Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) activities to accelerate mass mobile marketing using 2D barcodes.

The Mobile Codes Consortium, the cross-industry group created to promote unified standards in camera cell-phone barcode reading technology, in conjunction with the GSM Association and the Open Mobile Alliance, continues to bring large scale adoption of mobile codes closer to reality.

Dr. Frank Müller, Director of Intellectual Property and Strategy at NeoMedia Technologies, said: "The commitment of GSMA and OMA gives important impetus for the worldwide development of mobile marketing based on using 2D barcodes. The barcode reading technology, enabling people with mobile phones to read mobile codes and immediately connect to content and services, makes the mobile Internet much more accessible for consumers and likewise offers advertisers various opportunities for innovative, well-directed and cost-effective marketing approaches with precise response evaluation."

William "Chip" Hoffman, CEO of NeoMedia Technologies, said: "We are creating the mobile equivalent of 'hyper-text' for broadcast and print media. Like SMS, a standard technology used by all carriers world-wide, mobile barcodes allow Brands and Consumers to interact on static media the same way they do on the web; cross-country and cross-carrier. With this wireless technology and the associated systems supporting it, old-media becomes new-media."

Thomas Curwen of Publicis Dialog and co-chairman of the Mobile Codes Consortium, added: "Now that we are making real progress, we will now start work with the marketing industry to ensure that their needs are taken into consideration in the developing standards."

The Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) delivers open specifications for creating interoperable services that work across countries, operators, fixed and mobile terminals. Driven by users’ needs and the expanding market for data services, the member companies of the Open Mobile Alliance stimulate the adoption of new and enhanced information, communication and entertainment services. The Open Mobile Alliance includes contributors from all key elements of the wireless value chain, and contributes to the timely and efficient introduction of services and applications.

William Hoffman & Tim Kindberg To Attend I3A

NeoMedia Technologies' CEO William "Chip" Hoffman, and co-chairman of the Mobile Codes Consortium (MC2) Tim Kindberg will both be in attendance at this years Imaging Innovation, the 62nd Annual Conference of the International Imaging Industry Association (I3A). The 2008 edition of the conference will be held at the Vancouver Marriott in Vancouver BC Canada from June 4th through the 6th.

Imaging Innovation ‘08 is an extraordinary two-day conference featuring thought-provoking discussions on hot industry topics and valuable networking opportunities. The event will provide:

* An in-depth look at emerging technologies such as holographics and color matching by phone.

* Exploration of new and existing challenges within the imaging industry on metadata, security, mobile commerce, and global markets.

* Interactive discussions leading to action plans that will turn industry challenges into success.

* The opportunity to make valuable networking contacts that can translate to deals.

Chip Hoffman and Tim Kindberg will both be participating in an I3A panel discussion on June 5th from 4:00pm to 6:30pm. The panel discussion, Beyond Snapshots - Advanced Mobile Imaging Technology, takes a look at making money using the imaging capabilities of camera phones for everything from visual search to purchasing goods and services.

In the past few years mobile phone imaging capabilities have gone beyond picture taking. Mobile phones are now capable of connecting a barcode, watermark or even an ordinary image to timely and pertinent information relevant to the camera phone user. In many places, the handset can now be used as an electronic wallet, capable of purchasing goods and services such as transportation and point of sale payment for consumer goods. The panel will discuss current worldwide applications and future technologies that will allow users to get information or make purchases by simply pointing a camera phone.

In order to create a global ecosystem for mobile codes, NeoMedia is collaborating with recognized leaders in telecommunication infrastructure management to create a worldwide infrastructure for the processing of optically initiated transactions - called the Optical Messaging Interchange. This interchange would provide the mass reach required by brands and advertisers to invest in the technology, while enabling operators to leverage their investments in networks and subscribers. By embracing open standards, full interoperability, and by being barcode symbology agnostic, NeoMedia Technologies wants to provide a global infrastructure to insure that all transactions requested by end users “work” as intended, all parties are compensated correctly, and that the technology achieves mass adoption globally. In doing so, NeoMedia enables a seamless, secure, and reliable platform for mobile commerce using 1D and 2D barcodes and mobile devices. NeoMedia’s mission is to offer new ways to make mobile internet transactions effortless and more accessible while enhancing customer value and convenience.