Press Pass brings QR codes to cards in Redline
By Chris Olds | Beckett Sports Card Monthly Editor | Commentary & Opinion
It’s a simple touch, but I’m pretty sure it’s not been done much before — at least not on sports cards.
We’ve seen them seemingly everywhere — and on many a box of cards — but with its newest NASCAR product, Press Pass has added yet another feature to sports cards.
A QR code.
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The back of each base card in 2013 Press Pass Redline, which arrives in hobby shops beginning on June 19, includes a code with a simple blurb saying “Scan this QR code for more driver info from NASCAR.com.”
Developed in the 1990s, Quick Response codes allow someone to scan the image with a smartphone, which then takes them to an immediate location in a web browser. It’s recently become more prevalent on packaging of sports cards as a way for companies to save the simple costs of printing checklists and including them inside boxes.
It’s a simple touch that could open the door for all kinds of possibilities — whether it be multimedia, opportunities for cataloging, checklisting, stats, company publicity or more. Granted, tech-side developments would probably take more time and money — and may not result in any added sales, which is a key point for card companies’ efforts — but this seems to be an interesting new development.
And it seems to be one with potential.
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Chris Olds is the editor of Beckett Baseball magazine. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an email to him at colds@beckett.com. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here.
