• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, October 30, 2008

Takeaways from the session titled Best Case Scenarios: Learning from Good Work include "public space interactions and opt-ins," said Joe Mandese, MediaPost editor-in-chief, as he wrapped up the panel discussion.

Panelist said they will take calculated risks testing and learning new technologies such as Bluetooth, QR codes, and cashless payment systems like near field communications (NFC).

Some of the interesting facts emerging from this discussion looked at short codes and QR codes, which let consumers take a photo of an 3D bar code and download information from the Web via their cellphone.

U.S. carriers said during CTIA a couple of months ago they would allow cellphone makers to preload Scanbuy's Easy Code technology on handsets. Although panelists didn't provide an update on the standard or if operators would apply rates for click throughs once the technology gains traction, Patrick Moorehead, director of emerging media at Razorfish, went into his Tulsa test speech. "Is the guy from Tulsa going to get this because he's not the Manhattanite with the five QR scanners on the phone," he said. "For Tulsa consumers text messaging is cool. They're using it a lot. There's a tendency in the industry to focus on the bleeding edge. The Tulsa consumer may not have the iPhone app, so it's important to keep the focus on the majority consumer and slowly roll into programs that will have an impact."

Moorehead said the industry can place bets on whether QR codes will work in the US, but it needs to stay with what works for consumers. "I'm not saying, Joe, just saying Tulsa."