Paperboy becomes Shortcut
Kooaba is giving its smartphone app, Paperboy, a new name and a fresh design. The image-recognition app is now called «Shortcut,» and APG|SGA and Publicitas are also using it.
Shortcut replaces the previous name of the "Paperboy" app, which uses image recognition to connect printed media with the Internet. According to the press release, the Shortcut app can be used to photograph any pages in supported newspapers and magazines in order to receive the corresponding digital versions. These can then be commented on, saved or recommended to friends via e-mail and Facebook. For selected articles, additional content such as videos or picture galleries can also be discovered on the smartphone. Shortcut currently supports over 1,000 print titles worldwide.
This link between printed media and the digital world is of great interest for advertising, as the press release goes on to say. "Interactive print advertising will play an increasingly important role in the future. By integrating Shortcut, we are offering advertising customers clearly defined added value for communicating with consumers", explains Othmar Fischlin, Head of Marketing at Publicitas.
For the time being, Shortcut supports individual campaigns. However, the aim of Kooaba, APG|SGA and Publicitas is to soon make all print and poster advertising interactive. "It is in the interests of all parties involved that a joint app is used for interactive advertising. That's why we support this development and actively offer Shortcut to our customers, as demonstrated by the Tres Amigos poster campaign in the Zurich area," says Markus Ehrle, Head of Marketing & Business Development, APG|SGA.
Shortcut is available for iPhone, Android and Windows Phone 7.
