The QR code (Flash Code in France), also known under the Data Matrix name (in the USA, for instance, in aerospace industry worldwide) is a development of the well-known bar code, in two dimensions. It is sometimes referred to as an "intelligent bar code". Newspapers, film posters, flyers, bus timetables were among the first users … our cosmetics follow the trend. Well, what is its purpose?
At first sight, a QR code consists of black-and-white cells arranged in either a square or a rectangular pattern, which gives it a psychedelic and weird appearance. Their designers think of them as a new technology aimed at revolutionizing the consumer/product relationship.
In the cosmetic industry, after the
Natrue logo
launched its own one at the beginning of 2010, brands come to it more or less slowly … such as
Pomarium
, which helped us to decipher this new code.
A pictogram and its applications
A 2D bar code, in fact, is a means to ease access to information, everywhere anytime, as soon as one has an Internet-linked cell phone.
Thus, it allows for the going to a website while reading a newspaper to get more detailed pieces of information; for the seeing of the preview of a film just by wandering close to its poster in the street. One may look at the bus timetable and itinerary when at a stop, at the business hours and ticket prices of an amusement park by "flashing" on the ad in a newspaper. It is a way to get practical pieces of information on culture and sightseeing when strolling in a foreign …