A new solution for referencing Web pages in printed media

Tying printed publications together with Internet content is important for most newspaper and magazine publishers. Giving readers Internet sources for additional information about a story or enabling printed advertisements to direct readers to a web location where they can place an order are obvious examples. Implementing it, however has had its obstacles. URL’s take up a lot of space and look disruptive in a printed story. They are way too long for classified ads, and even in display ads the length can make them seem complex and uninviting. Worse, a reader using a web browser must type the URL, with its many characters and slashes, exactly right, or it won’t work.

DTI has invented a solution in which a URL of any length can be referenced in print with a simple four-letter code, which would look like this: UCJ2 . The patent pending solution is called SpeedURL. There are more examples of SpeedURL in this news release. Try it yourself. Simply go to www.dtint.com and enter the SpeedURL codes that you will find next to the URL’s included in this release, and you will be taken directly to the web pages referenced.

Any publisher can add SpeedURL to their publications and to their web site, regardless of what systems they are using. There are two parts to the SpeedURL solution. First, SpeedURL Creator, running in a browser, enables editors to put in a URL of any length and complexity and instantly receive a unique four-letter code in return. The code is added to the story or ad by typing, or cutting and pasting it in place, in whatever pagination or editing tool is being used. Its simplicity makes it easy to use and facilitates accuracy. (SpeedURL can even double-check the URL to verify it, before the code is returned, if desired.)

SpeedURL Linker is added to the publisher’s web site in the form of a very simple HTML entry box. A reader, accessing the publisher’s home page, can easily type in four letters and SpeedURL will immediately direct their browser to the desired web page referencing the original URL.

Some examples of SpeedURL codes are included in the paragraph below. For the purpose of this release both the full URL and the SpeedURL code are shown for comparison. As can be seen with this example, the SpeedURL is much shorter, and simpler to read. In application, a publisher would normally include only the four digit SpeedURL code.

There is already a recognized demand for such a solution to make it easier to put URLs into printed publications. Several companies, such as CueCat (http://www.crq.com/products.html) or CRQ1 and GoCode (http://www.gocode.com/press/coverage/000901MediaPost.php) or 9Z4D , have offered bar code based solutions to this problem. Their approach is to convert URLs into bar codes, which can then be printed. Readers are expected to have a bar code wand so they can easily scan in the URL instead of having to type it. Several publishers, including Forbes magazine (http://www.forbes.com/helpcenter/cat/) 26BM , Parade magazine (http://www.getcuecat.com/welcome/index.html) C3XZ and Belo, parent of the Dallas Morning News (http://www.dallasnews.com/slideshow/crqguide/guide.html) A9C4 , believed that solving this problem is important enough that they sent out thousands of bar code wands to readers for free.

DTI believes it has a simpler solution. First, SpeedURL is easier for the publisher. Instead of having to convert the URL into a bar code graphic and overcome the challenge of inserting the graphic into the text of a story or classified ad, DTI’s solution uses normal type. The process is faster and easier. Also, for the bar code to be scannable, it must be printed with very high quality, which can be difficult on newsprint and exacerbated if the code is scuffed in delivery or is on a fold. This is not an issue with DTI’s normal letter codes. And on the reader’s side, instead of having to get the publication positioned in front of their computer where they can scan the code correctly, they simply type in four letters. What if the reader is not at home where his bar code scanner is installed? SpeedURL will work in any browser.

Perhaps the greatest advantage of SpeedURL comes from the elimination of the bar code wands themselves. Publishers don’t have to spend thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars distributing bar code wands. They don’t have to worry about getting readers to install those wands onto their personal computers. And they don’t have to worry about maintaining those wands later when they fail. Even when readers did install the wands, the CueCat and GoCode bar codes were not compatible with each other. Several more companies such as DigiMarc introduced other scannable marking solutions which weren’t compatible with the others either.

Are there any drawbacks to DTI’s patent pending, software-only solution? Some might point out that DTI’s solution requires the reader to go to the publication’s home page before they can type in the four-letter code. DTI believes this is an advantage to the publisher, driving traffic to their pages. Besides, home pages are usually easy remember, bookmark, and enter correctly (i.e. www.forbes.com, or www.dtint.com).

Some may question how many total code combinations there are. DTI’s solution provides 1.67 million unique codes per publication. That would be sufficient for most publications for a very long time. But SpeedURL can expand the codes to reference a default date, such as the year in which the editions of a publication are published. That way, the limit is 1.67 million per publication per year (or other time period). When SpeedURL considers the year of the publication, it only requires a reader to use a pulldown menu for the year when looking for URL’s from previous year’s editions. The current year is assumed by default. By using the year as part of the code, or for catalog publishers, the current date of the catalog, the same codes can be used over, basically making the total number of combinations essentially unlimited.

Don Oldham, inventor of SpeedURL and CEO of DTI believes this solution will be more widely used because it is far less costly to implement. It becomes available to every single reader of a publication without them having to obtain and install anything. Additionaly, it can be implemented for use with any computer or other kind of device such as a PDA, mobile phone, or internet appliance, not just a Windows PC which is currently required by barcode and scanner solutions.