Helpupcomm™ update
For
those of you who read, learn and inwardly digest every word that
is written
in our articles here at The Tourism Network (which
of course is everyone) you’ll have been aware of the new
mobile phone technology we introduced some months ago called upcomm™.
With
just one click your advertisement, information, events, e.ticketing,
bookings,
audio clips, video, opening hours, virtual tour, in fact
anything you can imagine appears instantly on your camera-phone
screen – from anywhere in the world 24 hours a day, 7 days
a week.
By
the end of 2005 it will be available on 80% of smart technology
camera-phones.
This simple but ingenious application is already
taking off in Finland, where the product was designed and developed
over the past 10 years. As recently reported in the Sunday Times,
in the UK alone (2004) there were 48.7m users, of which 28.5% had
a phone camera. That’s a remarkable 14m people, and growing
annually, nearly half of mobile phones sold in Britain now include
a camera!
So
why is it important for tourism? Well, as the upcomm™ logo
says, “ignite your imagination”.
A
printed code (or uplink™) which can be as small as 1 cm
x 1 cm is linked securely to whatever web, wap or domain name you
choose. This makes it a direct and immediate link to whatever you
provide at that address. This could be a rolling events calendar,
a virtual tour of hotel rooms, seat availability and booking at
the theatre, ticket booking for a rail journey or travel information,
downloading a free tube map, information and extended information
on your product or service, real time updates or advice.
It’s
very easy to use, for businesses and the public. All they need
to do is just point - and the phone does the rest, immediately
receiving the relevant information for the user to see.
The
BBC have recently used it for extended information on coastal
walks around
the UK recently, and upcomm™ uplinks are soon
to appear on the front page of Finland’s FT giving real time
news in a media that was always a day behind. Importantly, this
is an area where the tourism industry could see the greatest benefit
with real time access to information. No more out of date ads,
books, guides, signs, posters, leaflets – just click and
get right up to speed.
The
upcomm™ programme is available to download free of charge
(a list of current phones is featured on the site) at – www.upcomm.net
There,
you’ll see two examples illustrating just how easy
and effective the application can be – try it for yourself
and we’ll ensure we keep you informed, through The Tourism
Network, on this new technology as you see it appear more and more
in everyday use.
Mark Hendriksen
mark@b3online.co.uk
|
