Following the trend of printing QR codes on things, many services are cropping up offering to plaster the codes on clothing. Such is the case with ScanMe. The company specializes in stylized t-shirt designs that feature a customized QR code. The code, difficult to find at times amidst the complexities of the designs, can be linked to a customer’s Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn page.
The interesting part is that the codes are updated in real time. Given their connection to social networking sites, that seems sensible. The codes can be programmed to display, when scanned, the latest status message posted to a customer’s Twitter or Facebook page. Never before have QR codes received such dedicated updating. While the process is autonomous, it marks the first time anyone can share their status via t-shirt.
QR codes are proving to be popular with those constantly entangled in social media. They are a new way to distribute information that has yet to become cliché. There are concerns over privacy, of course. Given that the codes can be scanned by anyone with a smart phone capable of doing so, ScanMe has given customers the ability to control what can and cannot be seen by scanning. In essence, the codes will not actually link to a customer’s Facebook page if they don’t want it to. In such a case, the code will simply display a text message when scanned.
As the lines between real and virtual society continue to blur, QR codes have shown themselves to be a bridge between both worlds.
