Connected devices such as smartphones and tablets have contributed to an explosion in digital media consumption. As these devices gain adoption, print newspapers around the world are seen suffering from declining readership and revenue. To combat this the Tokyo Shimbun along with Dentsu Tokyo came up with a new way to connect with readers. An Augmented Reality Reader app was created that brought to life the newspaper by overlaying educational versions of the articles for kids.
A French company called Capturio turns a t-shirt into a business card. You point your phone at what someone is wearing, and the “link” is the fabric itself. No QR code required.
Right after that, Blippar in the UK takes the same idea to printed images. A newspaper page, poster, or pack becomes the trigger. The result is a 3D augmented reality overlay that appears on-screen the moment the image is recognised. Again, no QR code.
QR codes get put to good use in countless innovative projects. But the drift is clearly towards technology that produces similar results without visible codes.
Capturio’s concept is simple. The physical object becomes the identifier. A t-shirt behaves like a clickable surface in the real world.
Blippar creates augmented reality effects from printed images without “activating” anything via a QR code. The interaction is straightforward:
In India, Telibrahma uses the same approach to increase experiential engagement for brands via traditional media like newspapers and posters.
The bigger idea is not the novelty of 3D overlays. It is that physical surfaces become links. Clothing, posters, newspaper pages, packaging, storefronts. Anything that can be recognised can behave like a gateway to content, commerce, or interaction.
What is “hyperlinking the real world” in this post?
Using image recognition and AR so physical objects like shirts, posters, and print behave like clickable links without QR codes.
Which companies are the concrete examples?
Capturio (France), Blippar (UK), and Telibrahma (India).
How does Blippar work at a high level?
Download the app, scan a Blippar-enabled image (marked with a small Blippar logo), then interact with a 3D AR overlay.
What traditional media does this apply to?
Newspapers, posters, and other printed images.
GoldRun and Young & Rubicam have created the world’s first invisible pop-up store, bringing limited edition Airwalk sneakers directly to the biggest skate & surf spots in the country. Sneakerheads and skaters alike visited the virtual store at Washington Square Park in NYC and Venice Beach in LA.
