December 18th 2010 brought about a large change in demand when Avatar hit the theatres in 3D. From that moment to it now being the 'biggest movie of all time' quoted Details magazine, 3D technology went from being a novelty to a necessity for not only the tech savvy consumer, but the modern family as well.
Howard Stringer, CEO of Sony has not only been in the race for 3D, he is at Sony's helm with a goal to fuse it into the fabric of our everyday lives. While Samsung, Panasonic and Toshiba are releasing new TV models, some critique Sony as betting the credibility of its entire ethos on the ability to convince the 2.0 consumer that 3D is the new reality. Wired's Karl Greenfeld claims Howard is doubling down on aggressive new formats and betting big on a holistic roll-out, in that TV, Playstation, Vaio and BluRay are all to support 3D innovations. "Sony products seem to be exactly what we didn't even know we were waiting for," says Howard in Wired's April issue. Many see this as a shake-up, and Howard is not one to dwell on the past, however, using Sony's ability to be ahead of the market when it brought the first; pocket transistor radio, the cassette tape player, the home video recorder, the CD player, and the 3.5 floppy disk (to name a few) to the market, regarding 3D, it's go big or go home time.
Product innovation in the consumer electronic category has no doubt built bridges between two worlds, much like 3D technology is doing. Camcorders are snapping photos, cameras are recording video, handheld gaming devices now store and stream music, and the 'smart' phone can do all of the above and much more! QR (Quick Response) codes were seen as the bridge between the Internet and the 'outernet,' during SXSW 2010 and if this notion be true as many suspect, the phone is the obvious tool needed to bring about such a reality. It can be said that what 3D is to home entertainment, augmented reality is to the mobile experience. I disagree for the reason that augmented reality provides a simple sense of an environment much like a 2D viewing experience does. 3D goes beyond the screen to bring an experience to life, just like QR codes have the ability to bring digital content to life not on a mobile screen but out in the open, on street corners, buildings, monuments and the lot.
February's issue of Details magazine dedicated 4 pages of a men's wear fashion spread with QR codes. Using a recognition app enabling a mobile's camera to focus in over a QR code, launches the mobile browser leading the consumer to a coupon respective to the fashion spread's QR tag. According to a sneak peak from TechCrunch, Facebook is testing the use of QR codes which link to a retail location's facebook page. The QR codes can be printed out and displayed for customers to snap a photo of them as a means to 'check-in' within the cloud. Further more, there are rumors of Real Estate companies and brokers adopting a QR code strategy. Flyers would display a QR code, that when photographed the consumer would instantly see a video tour of a house and/or specific details right on their mobile. The possibilities for how QR codes can be used to marry two worlds are endless.
While 3D and QR technology seem to be the hot trends maturing into platforms for change and innovative leaps forward, the success foreseen by Howard Stringer and others depend on proper implementation. True ROI in today's world comes from content sharing and talking with and listening to consumers. Social media is pivotal in bringing brands and consumers closer together to unveil the level of intimacy desired by both sides to encourage if nothing else, participation. What builds these strong bonds between brand X and John Doe are high levels of chemistry, authenticity, transparency, inspiration, connectivity, value, shared POVs, empathy, the list is sometimes endless. Mobile technology through the use and development of applications have capitalized on these core underpinnings of relationship building. JetBlue's Twelpforce, Nike iD & Nike True City, My Starbucks Idea, the Ford Fiesta movement, and many more are key examples of how brands are crossing the bridge between the Internet and the 'outternet.' Critics have coined the phrase "Consumer 2.0" to match the cyborgian characteristics we have adopted and welcomed into our lives. 3D no doubt answers the question of how might everyday things be improved to meet the demand of tomorrow, however QR technology is vital when using participation tactics to solve some of the new breed of business problems as two worlds collide.
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