Motorola’s investment arm, Motorola Ventures, has invested an undisclosed amount of money in mobile barcode company Scanbuy. The company’s barcode technology allows camera phone users to access information such as product reviews, price comparisons and coupon offers.
“Mobile barcodes are an extremely powerful tool for consumers, businesses and wireless providers, which makes this opportunity very exciting for Motorola,” said Motorola Ventures Managing Director Reese Schroeder in a statement. “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.”
Motorola Ventures led the funding round. Masthead Venture Partners, Hudson Ventures and private investors also participated.
Scanbuy’s ScanLife technology is available on the iPhone as well as devices based on Android, BlackBerry, Java and Symbian. The platform supports one- and two-dimensional barcodes and has been deployed across North America, Latin America, Western Europe and Asia.
Scanbuy has spent the past couple years securing partnerships with various wireless companies in an effort to expand the global reach of mobile barcode technology.
Company CEO Jonathan Bulkeley said in a statement that he was “thrilled” to have Motorola as a strategic investor. “Their expertise and resources will contribute to mass adoption of this great technology,” he said.