Microsoft Tag was released 18 months ago into a public beta, and now 1 billion tags later, Microsoft has moved Tag out of beta and into V1. In the month of April, more than 20 million magazines featuring the tag were in hands of U.S. consumers.
Microsoft Tag"s High Capacity Color Barcode (HCCB) is a 2D barcode that is readable on mobile phones and other supported devices, that decodes the data on the image, which can contain up to 3,500 characters per inch. The coloured triangles on the HCCB can contain information in plain text, links to specific websites, vCard or quick-dial phone number.
With the release of V1, Microsoft Tag plans to bring some new and cool features to the application, including advanced analytics, heat map and real-time location services, which will be released over time. The applications and tags are completely free to download or generate.
Along with the exciting release and upcoming features, Microsoft Tag has added five new languages including: French, Spanish, Turkish, Simplified Chinese and Italian. Along with the new release, the Microsoft Tag"s website received a complete makeover, including a new logo.