I fear I might have been removed from the NeoMedia mailing list as I didn’t see this press release until today! But it’s very interesting in our mobile barcode space.
Basically, NeoMedia has published a bit about a new Licensing Program. The licensing program comes after it has won a re-examination of the “Barcode Lookup Patent” by the USPTO. This means that NeoMedia is wasting no time in showing that it owns the barcode patent and wants to get the license fee it has been hungry for.
From the press release:
“Now that the patent situation has been clarified, we are looking forward to quickly establishing a viable system that provides the critical elements needed to attract advertisers: reliability and scale. Our recent partnership with NeuStar demonstrates that an interoperable infrastructure is deployable now and provides advertisers with a trusted solution that delivers the largest audience in the U.S. mobile barcode marketplace. It was a great success and a real rallying point for the industry,” stated Iain McCready, CEO of NeoMedia.
What we think?
Licensing fees can be a pain –but are standard and often necessary. They can work in several ways, one single fee or a small retainer and then a revenue share; or just a revenue share…
At this moment, I am not sure which way NeoMedia is going but flexibility is essential. I am happy for NeoMedia that it has won its patent issues but the mobile barcode market is also still in its infancy. A hefty license fee will kill some companies off. We don’t want this here at GoMo News. So consideration is necessary.
I will try and do some digging and find out more on the type of agreement.
I remember in an old interview Iain McCready CEO of NeoMedia mentioned that he would make the licensing fee fair – so lets see.
Apart from that, what on earth is NeoSphere? Where did that name come from. We used to have qode then NeoReader and now some kind of NeoSphere management platform … fingers crossed (as NeoMedia pulls itself up the ladder) we don’t get lost in newness.
The most important thing now for the company and all mobile barcode companies is collaboration, standardisation and collective measures to succeed.
http://www.neom.com/neosphere-specs.phpj
From the NEOM CC the other day, IM stated licensing would be on a per-click basis.
“Apart from that, what on earth is NeoSphere? Where did that name come from. We used to have qode then NeoReader and now some kind of NeoSphere management platform”
Pretty clear to me:
* Qode is a “Code”.
* NeoReader is an “Application” (that reads codes)
* NeoSphere is an “Infrastructure” (or EcoSystem for tracking codes clicked, i.e.: marketing campaigns)
Hope that helps.
I am so looking forward to seeing NeoMedia flurish. I strongly believe in this company, and the patents they hold. I also believe they are going to ignite now excitement and ideas in the mobile and marketing industries, which will benefit everyone. If Neomedia makes money (for once), then they can focus on standardization which is really needed.
At the same time, other companies that use this technology really need to take responsibility and start paying licensing. Using NeoMedia’s technology without licensing is like downloading and stealing illegal MP3s, IMO. And we’ve all seen how costly payback can be when caught.
Best wishes.
Guess I shouldn’t type so early in the morning. Appologies for the typos.
Disclosure: Neil Peart is a Neomedia shareholder.