UK startup Quikkly has unveiled an alternative to QR codes that aims to provide an improved user experience and increased consumer uptake. “QR codes are great for machines, but they weren’t designed for people,” Quikkly says. “We’ve designed Quikkly Tags to be understandable by everyone. It’s clear what app to use and it’s clear what will happen when you scan the tag.” More
Toronto-Dominion Bank is expected to announce a partnership with New York based banking app maker Moven to help its customers use their smartphones to keep track of every purchase they make, The Globe and Mail reports... More
Barclays is to run a three month Bluetooth beacon technology trial at its Pinstone Street branch in Sheffield, UK, to alert bank staff to the presence of customers with disabilities... More
Canada’s Scotiabank has launched a Quick Balance app for the Samsung Gear 2 and Samsung Gear S smartwatches that lets customers check their account balance with a swipe of the screen... More
Mobile marketing and advertising platform BeaconStream is to pilot iBeacon technology in malls in Bengaluru and Chennai, India, within the next three weeks, The Hindu reports... More
Six in ten (60%) shoppers who receive a beacon-triggered message while shopping in a store open and engage with the content and 30% redeem beacon-triggered offers at the point of sale, analysis by Bluetooth beacon offers platform Swirl has found... More
UK transportation operator FirstGroup has installed Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons on buses in the city of Norwich to help deliver content and offers to passengers’ smartphones... More
Japanese startup TenTen Technologies is to offer retailers USB-based Bluetooth beacons that plug into POS terminals and vending machines so that rewards can be issued automatically to users of the company’s mobile app when they make a purchase... More
Motorola has unveiled Motorola Keylink, a US$24.99 smart keyfob that uses Bluetooth Low Energy to enable iOS and Android device owners to track down their smartphone or their keys if they misplace them... More
Mobile in-store marketing solution provider inMarket’s iBeacon platform now reaches 31.5m monthly active consumers, the equivalent of 18% of all US mobile users, according to research conducted by Comscore... More
Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons that use energy harvesting technology to avoid the need to change batteries have been installed by Japan Airlines (JAL) at 13 major Japanese airports to provide users of its JAL Countdown mobile app with “real-time departure, gate and other timely information”... More
Arts Centre Melbourne is rethinking its approach to using Bluetooth beacons after a disappointing pilot that used the technology to send out food and beverage offers to visitors during October’s Melbourne Festival... More
Korean internet and messaging giant Daum Kakao has launched BankWalletKakao, a mobile wallet service provided in partnership with 16 Korean banks and Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearing Institute (KFTC)... More
Samsung has unveiled Proximity, a location-based marketing platform that uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons and works in a similar way to Apple’s iBeacon system — but without the need for consumers to be persuaded to download a marketer’s own app to access the service... More
Costa Rican bank Grupo Mutual has worked with biometric technology provider FacePhi to build face recognition into its mobile banking app... More
Customers of the UK’s Nationwide bank can now see their account balance in real time on an Android Wear smartwatch... More
London’s highest viewing gallery is to deploy Bluetooth beacons 800 feet (243m) above the city at the top of its tallest building. Aruba will supply the The View at The Shard with BLE beacons and a software platform to deliver information about notable landmarks visible from the tourist attraction to visitors’ mobile devices... More
There will be 604m users of wearable biometric technology globally by 2019, a new report from Goode Intelligence forecasts... More
A Virginia Circuit Court judge has ruled that police officers cannot force criminal suspects to divulge mobile phone passwords but they can force them to unlock their phone with a fingerprint scanner, WSJ reports... More
Toronto-based in-store marketing specialist Aislelabs has published an online comparison examining Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon hardware from 16 different vendors including Estimote, Kontakt and Gimbal... More