Motorola invests in mobile barcode solutions Scanbuy

Motorola through its strategic investment arm, Motorola Ventures, has announced an investment in Scanbuy, Inc., a leader in mobile barcode solutions. Motorola acted as lead investor and was joined by Masthead Venture Partners, Hudson Ventures and select private investors. Financial terms of the investment were not disclosed.

Scanbuy’s “ScanLife” platform provides a fast and easy way for advertisers to provide digital information to consumers through the use of barcodes and camera phones. With ScanLife, businesses can place one- or two-dimensional barcodes on their product packaging or in a magazine ad or other type of media. By using their ScanLife-enabled camera phones to view the barcode, consumers can immediately access information such as product reviews, price comparisons and coupon offers. With one click, users can link to a website, launch a video or share information via social networking tools like Facebook or Twitter. Barcodes placed on outdoor signage can connect people with information and directions to stores or other points of interest.

Business users can access the ScanLife Code Management Platform to track and analyze data such as scan quantities and locations, empowering them to better understand consumer habits and further target their advertising. Millions of people around the world already have ScanLife on devices using major operating systems like Android, BlackBerry OS, iPhone OS, Java and Symbian, extending the reach and power of the platform.

“Motorola has looked at this market very carefully and believes that Scanbuy has the best combination of technology and strong ecosystem partners in its space,” said Reese Schroeder, managing director of Motorola Ventures. “Mobile barcodes are an extremely powerful tool for consumers, businesses and wireless providers, which makes this opportunity very exciting for Motorola. The camera quality, display capability and processing power of today’s smartphones, coupled with advanced network speeds, now enable consumers and the advertising community to fully take advantage of mobile barcode technology.”

“We have spent the last couple of years securing partnerships with leaders in the wireless ecosystem that now will set the stage for the expansion of mobile barcode technology around the world,” said Jonathan Bulkeley, chief executive officer of Scanbuy. “We are thrilled to have a strategic investor like Motorola involved at this next stage of development. Their expertise and resources will contribute to mass adoption of this great technology.”