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There is no doubt that the age of interactivity is upon us. Media is changing at an incomprehensible pace. Consumers are no longer content to sit back and be marketed to, they demand involvement: QR codes, 2D barcodes, Facebook, Twitter. With the introduction of the iPhone and other smartphones, marketing messages are literally delivered into the palms of our hands. The way we interact with our world and each other has changed right under our noses. Facebook has become the third largest country in the world, making our friends accessible virtually 24/7.
In response to this shift in the way we connect and consume, Kima Labs has launched Barcode Hero, it is free iPhone app meets Facebook meets Foursquare. The premise: shopping with friends is more fun. What I find most compelling about Barcode Hero (and don't get me wrong, I think it is awesome) is that it both illustrates and capitalizes on the fact that, as a society, our definition of with friends has changed. To be with my friends, doesn't require anything beyond my iPhone. What are the implications of this on the definition of carpool, I wonder?
Barcode Hero has deemed itself a “social barcode scanner.” You login with your Facebook account and start scanning. You scan barcodes on the things you have, want or are buying. As you scan, you rack up points in certain categories, reaching a certain number of points in a category earns you the title Duke, Duchess, King or Queen in that category (much like the viral GPS game Foursquare, where you can become Mayor of locations you frequent). Currently, these accolades are their own reward, but Kima Labs predicts sponsorships, promotions and offers to be the future of Barcode Hero.
The only admissible criticism of the app relates to Barcode Hero's use of your Facebook account. However, Kima Labs assures users that they hate Facebook spammers as much as you do and will never post anything to your wall, contact your Facebook friends, or post anything to your wall without your permission. Other criticism relates only to the app's relevance and that remains a matter of subjectivity.
The overnight success of the Barcode Hero app represents overwhelming societal and cultural implications relating to consumerism and connectivity, but the most important question relates to an immutable concept: fun. Is it fun? Heck yeah, it is.
Download Barcode Hero for the iPhone now on iTunes or get on the list for the Android version.