The Internet of things is the one of the next big side effects of our always on, always mobile lifestyles. McKinsey recently released a report on the implications of the Internet of things. I saw this coming to life this weekend.
At SXSW everyone was given a little packet of stickers. Actually everyone was given a lot of stickers. There was also a proliferation of QR codes (they were a sponsor) and Microsoft TAG codes (TAG is a client). But the previously mentioned pack of stickers were filled with little barcodes.
- Image by Status Frustration via Flickr
If you own an iPhone you can download the stickybits iPhone app, scan the barcode and add “content” like pics, vids, text or audio and send that sticker to someone. If they have the stickybits app they can scan the barcode and see all that content you associated with the code.
Anyone who’s familiar with QR and TAG codes is thinking, so what, they can do that too in various types of ways.
BUT (here’s the kicker) you can scan and associate content to ANY barcode. Like all those barcodes on all the shelves in all the stores all over the World.
There’s a lot of cool things people could do with this. Leave favorite recipes, or shopping trips. But there’s another side. Maybe I’ve just been hanging around PR people too long but I see more fragmentation of communication that brands have to be a little worried about.
Many of you are familiar with Google Sidewiki, the Google Toolbar extension that lets you add notes to the side of any Web page on the Internet. This concept, and all the potential nightmares that came with it, may sound familiar.
Stickybits is a new product so not many people would ever see the content you associate with a barcode (yet). But what if it did take off? Imagine being a product manager at Product & Gamble and trying to monitor all those conversations across all your products.
- Wearing your Stickybit on your sleeve, or elsewhere (news.cnet.com)
- The Secret Lives Of Objects: StickyBits Turn Barcodes Into Personal Message Boards (techcrunch.com)
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