Shazam’s new visual recognition function snapped up by Aus brands

UK-based music identification app Shazam can now see. It has launched a visual recognition function, which has initially been snapped up by three brands for use in the Australian market.

“The introduction of visual recognition is another step on our journey to extend the ways people can use Shazam to engage with the world around them,” said its CEO Rich Riley. “For brands, we’re providing a near-frictionless way to engage customers on their mobile devices, with a single tap of a button.”

Users with the latest version of Shazam on their mobile phone access the new functionality by tapping the camera icon and “Shazam an item with the Shazam camera logo on it.”

The new capability will live alongside the existing Shazam audio recognition functionality which people rely on to discover new artists, catch up on favorite acts, listen to music, and use while watching TV.

Southern Cross Austereo will use it for upcoming marketing activity in Australia via outdoor and TV, “enabling our audiences to engage with even more of our content directly from their mobile phones.”

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment will use it to promote the Batman: Arkham Knight video game for its June 24th Australian launch.

Universal Pictures International will test the new functionality for three major releases – Jurassic World to be released in Australia on June 11, Minions on June 18 and Ted 2 on June 25. Those who Shazam the poster can buy tickets to the movie, watch the trailer and TV ads, enter competitions and get additional content like exploring the Jurassic World park on their phones.

Altogether, 16 brands around the world signed on as launch partners. They include The Walt Disney Company (for the Tomorrowland movie), Target), Conde Nast’s women’s well-being Self, HarperCollins, Hearst’s Esquire, England’s fashion retailer Boohoo.com, The Wall Street Journal, Time Inc,’s Sports Illustrated, merchandising firm Merchbar (for products from Meghan Trainor and Nick Jonas), Evian, French perfume house Guerlain and out-of-home advertising Outfront Media.

Shazam has 100 million active monthly users globally. The app which started with music discovery has in recent years broadened to media and content discovery. Its next step is most likely to be a beacon technology play.