QR vs. NFC

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Who will win the mobile trigger battle? The emergence of NFC-based mobile advertising campaigns will help QR-based campaigns be more successful, not replace them. But it’s a matter of time. DefinitionsQR codes are two-dimensional barcodes, which can be read by smartphones. QR codes connect the physical world to the Internet (this act is known as physical world hyperlinks). The connection takes place when a user launches an App and scans (takes a picture) of the QR. NFC is the communication of two computer chips. One chip is in your phone, and the other is in the form of a tag (or sticker) that can be placed in a poster, a checkout scanner, on a product, etc. If your phone is embedded with one of these chips, all you have to do is wave your phone over an NFC chip to trigger an event. History of NFCNFC evolved from RFID technology; it has been used in "contact-less" payment systems and enables wireless payments at retail stores. In addition, NFC can be used to track account balances, personal information, etc. NFC is still in its infancy in the US, however, Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft, et al have their eyes on the NFC mobile payment market. NFC has some distinct advantage over QR codesFor example, they scan very reliably and quickly; the chips can be in a stationery place and easily be reprogrammed when the information needs to change.However, NFC may not yet be ready for prime time. There is currently a very small density of phones in customers’ hands that are equipped for NFC. (Look for more solid market penetration in a couple of years.) In 2008, Jupiter Research projected that up to 700 million NFC-enabled mobile phones will be sold by 2013, representing up to 25 percent of the market at that time.  Google and Amazon are working to make platforms for NFC marketing in bulk. Currently, unless there’s a massive shift in the way the chips are produced, NFC is very much cost prohibitive. Today, a person can generate a QR code for free online, and print it on just about anything.The capabilities of NFC such as mobile payments, location-based navigation and POS will replace QR Codes in many cases. However, when it comes to print collateral, QR Codes are wide spread, affordable and cost little or nothing to create. Not to mention, they can be created by anyone. Prediction: We will not be saying goodbye to QR codes anytime soon.  Also, there remains security and privacy concerns, which has yet to be resolved with NFC. Unless world-class security features are developed, the public may be hesitant having their financial and personal information broadcasted. ConclusionIt’s this author’s opinion that (depending on other, unforeseen technologies) QR codes appear to be the obvious choice of today, and NFC will emerge along side of it. They each have their advantages and should coexist and benefit each other for some time. Eric Weymueller http://contentai.com/blog/ believes that the emergence of NFC-based mobile advertising campaigns will help QR-based campaigns be more successful—not replace them.
 Chris Lehan is the Director of Product Development at Impressions Incorporated (a multi-color printer in St. Paul, MN specializing in the complete production of customized printing and paperboard packaging). http://www.i-i.com
Follow me on Twitter @chrislehan