What is this? It’s a Shotcode and it might be a part of the future of how we deal with links. Only a part of that future, mind you but I am getting ahead of myself. So how does this stylish little symbol work? If you happen to have a phone with the Shotcode software installed, you can take a picture of this image and you will be sent to the website that it’s linked to (which happens to be here). The idea is that products can be branded with these codes and you won’t have to wait until you get home to find out more about them.

Shotcode

Imagine a world where you could learn where your favorite band will be playing just by taking a picture of their poster. The applications are really limitless, but the barriers to use are high. In order for this product to be valuable at all — the Shotcode team will need to convince businesses that there is good reason to add these tags to their product. And to convince businesses that it is worth it, there will need to be a critical mass of Shotcode users, which in turn requires that there are Shotcodes available to use. I am sure you see the problem.

How could they get around this problem? One avenue that they could explore is arranging for the Shotcode software to come pre-installed on mobile phones. By forging deals with the mobile industry, especially the software arm of it, you can almost completely eliminate the biggest barrier to entry. Seems simple enough, until you realize how slow moving the mobile industry is, especially in the U.S.

Web 2.0 Roundup

No matter what you think of the products future, it is an interesting look at how linking can migrate into the real world. If you want to participate in the BETA test of the product, head on over to their site and then come back here to try it out.

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