SpyderLynk, for instance, has developed Snap Tags, an application-free alternative to a 2D mobile barcode that works with either a standard or smart phone.

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Sophisticated smartphone features such as mobile shopping apps and barcode scanners means that mobile phones could play an important role in the growth of online EGM sales.

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The CS40 provides the ultimate solution for mobile professionals that require high performance barcode scanning and mobile line of business applications.

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This summer Japan Airlines began installing NFC equipment at its major hubs in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Okinawa, becoming the first airline globally to enable smart phones with NFC chips to act as boarding passes for passengers flying domestically, relieving travellers of the need to fumble with an airline app or the relevant email to find the barcode currently used on mobile boarding passes.

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The consumer places his or her mobile device under the imager, the 2D barcode is read, and the POS treats the tender like a gift card, following the usual payment verification procedure.

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Although barcodes are very easy to transmit securely to mobile devices, the estimated 165 million standard barcode scanners at checkout locations in the U.S. have a very hard time reading them off of reflective screens.

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For example, a consumer could use their mobile phone to order a product by snapping a digital barcode and have the item shipped to their house, Mr. McLaughlin said.

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