Belgium based company Vision Smarts announces the rerelease of pic2shop, a free real-time barcode scanning application available now in the iTunes store. Pic2shop boasts faster and more accurate barcode scanning allowing consumers to compare competitor prices on millions of items. Interested in books? Check not only retail prices, but public library availability for more than one billion items.

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Belgium – Vision Smarts, developers of cutting-edge image and video analysis software, announced today the re-launch of pic2shop, a free real-time barcode scanning application for all generations of the popular Apple iPhone (many similar products are limited to working with the iPhone 3Gs due to its auto-focusing camera). Using the iPhone’s camera, users are able to scan barcodes and compare tens of millions of products online. US users are also given access to local prices for items based on their current location, conveniently displaying them on a map for quick access. Going beyond just retail, Pic2shop will also tell you if a scanned book is available at your local library.

Why pay money… to save money? Pic2shop is the #1 free barcode scanning application in the iTunes store. Pic2shop’s success lies in its lighting quick speed and incredible accuracy along with its ability to draw real-time search results with Krillion and WorldCat databases. Retail database Krillion provides localized search results for thousands of products in over 40,000 U.S. locations. As a result they are able to accurately assess product location and availability for consumer products. WorldCat is the world’s largest compilation of library content and services and is able to work seamlessly with pic2shop to let you know not only which local libraries contain the desired item but also where in the library it’s located and if it’s been checked out.

Pic2shop features include:

ALL IPHONES: Not just the 3GS, scans barcodes on the first-gen and 3G too!

GLOBAL COVERAGE: Pic2Shop is in more than 30 countries around the world!

ONLINE SEARCH: Thousands of online retailers help you get the best prices

LOCAL SEARCH: Don’t want to pay for shipping? We can tell you if the store down the street has it

LIBRARY SEARCH: Why pay when you can check things out? Pic2Shop searches local libraries for what you are interested in and will even tell you if it’s checked out (and when it’s due back!).

EMAIL: Send the last entry… or the last 20 entries to yourself or a friend via email

Pic2shop is a free download available now in the iTunes store and is compatible with iPhone OS 3.1 or higher. For more information search pic2shop in the productivity category or visit pic2shop.com to see it in action.

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About Vision Smarts

Vision Smarts is a Belgian SPRL (LLC) that develops, distributes, and supports software libraries for image recognition and real-time video analysis. The company strives to make cutting-edge technology that is easy to integrate and is affordable. Vision Smarts founder, Benoit Maison has helped develop and patent new products for several high-tech companies. His interests range from Artificial Intelligence and Statistical Machine Learning to Web-Enabled Business and Mobile Applications. For more information go to www.visionsmarts.com

WorldCard Mobile – business card reader & business card scanner App for the iPhone and iPod Touch has been selected as a finalist from among over 300 entries in this year’s International CTIA WIRELESS E-Tech Awards in the Mobile Applications — Pro-sumer/Business Productivity category.

“We received a record number of submissions for the E-Tech Awards this year, a true testament to industry innovation and the pervasiveness of mobile technology,” said Heather Lee Landers, assistant vice president of marketing for CTIA. “We congratulate all of the E-Tech Awards finalists for demonstrating the talent and vision that will lead us into the mobile decade.”

The WorldCard Mobile app by Penpower Inc also has the chance to win Best Online Pick at the show. Please show support for this great networking and business productivity tool by selecting the “Mark as a Favorite” option here: http://bit.ly/Vote4WCM The deadline is Monday, March 22, 2010 at 5:00 PM (Eastern Time)!

The International CTIA WIRELESS event will take place March 23-25 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

E-Tech Awards winners will be announced at a ceremony hosted by Robert Mesirow, vice president and show director for CTIA and Tim Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies, on Wednesday, March 24 at 2:00 p.m. on the Exhibits Innovation Stage located in the Emerging Technology Zone on the International CTIA WIRELESS exhibit floor, North Hall.

More than 80 prominent media and industry analysts judged the entries based on innovation, functionality, technological importance, implementation and the overall “wow” factor. Many award submissions will be on display at International CTIA WIRELESS in a showcase located in the Emerging Technology Zone, North Hall.

International CTIA WIRELESS show attendees will also have the chance to vote via text message onsite for products in the E-Tech Awards display to win Best in Show.

About CTIA Shows Celebrating 25 years as the premier global mobile marketplace, International CTIA WIRELESS 2010® brings together all industries advanced by wireless technology for three days of intense business, learning and networking in Las Vegas, March 23-25. CTIA WIRELESS IT&E 2010 takes place in San Francisco, October 6-8. Visitwww.ctiashow.com.

CTIA-The Wireless Association® is the international association for the wireless telecommunications industry, representing carriers, manufacturers and wireless Internet providers. CTIA is also recognized as the producer of two annual expositions. For more association information, visit www.ctia.org.

Just in time for the Academy Awards, E! Entertainment today relaunched their popular E! Online mobile application for the iPhone, iPod touch and Android phones with a full set of new interactive features deigned to give fans up close and personal access during the 2010 awards season. The E! Online mobile app will bring viewers unparalleled coverage from the Academy Awards on Sunday, March 7, as well as leading up to the big event and in the days that follow.

Los Angeles, CA – E! Entertainment, the global leader for celebrity and entertainment news and information, today announces the relaunch of its popular E! Online mobile app for the iPhone and Android platforms. In addition to a “facelift” and EVEN more engaging video content, the app now features the network’s signature “E! Talk Box”, which allows users to record their own video submissions for possible inclusion on E! and/or E! Online.

The E! Online mobile app will also bring viewers unparalleled coverage from the Academy Awards on Sunday, March 7, as well as leading up to the big event and in the days that follow, including news story updates directly from the red carpet, Fashion Police photos and exclusive video clips. As part of the app update, a new carousel navigation menu above the news section highlights the award season coverage with special video content and a new “Live from the Red Carpet” section.

Since its release in May 2009, the E! Online mobile application has been the go-to source for everything entertainment news and pop culture-related. Over 1.4 million iPhone and Android users enjoy the app on a regular basis, garnering 54 million page views and 1.3 million video views in January alone.

The new “E! Talk Box” feature adds a unique interactive twist to the application. For the first time, users can record their own video commentary (on supported handsets) on hot topics and celebrity headlines and submit them directly to E! where a few selected video responses will be featured on the air and online.

“With this relaunch, we’re taking the E! Online app to the next level in terms of both content and interactivity,” said John Najarian, Executive Vice President, Digital Media and Business Development, Comcast Entertainment Group, “E! fans are passionate when it comes to their favorite celebrities and the E! Talk Box feature allows them to be heard loud and clear anywhere, anytime with a chance to end up on our air.”

Additional features in the E! Online App include:

* Download full episodes of the hottest E! shows like The Soup, The Girls Next Door and Keeping Up with the Kardashians

* Keep up with the E! Online movie reviews and bloggers like Watch with Kristin and Ted Casablanca’s Awful Truth

* Keep tabs on your favorite celebrities by creating your own celeb list – E! Online will deliver all the news from those celebs directly to your phone

Device Requirements:
* iPhone and iPod touch
* Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later
* 1.2 MB

Pricing and Availability:
The E! Online mobile app is available now on iTunes and in the Android Marketplace as a free download. For more information visit E! Online under the mobile category.

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Based in Los Angeles, Comcast Entertainment Group operates E! Entertainment Television, the 24-hour network with programming dedicated to the world of entertainment, and E! Online; The Style Network, the destination for women 18-49 with a passion for the best in relatable, inspiring and transformational lifestyle programming; and G4, offering the last word on gaming, technology, animation, interactivity and “geek culture” for the male 18-34 demo. E! is currently available to 97 million cable and satellite subscribers in the U.S. and the E! Everywhere initiative underscores the company’s dedication to making E! content available on all new media platforms any time and anywhere from online to broadband video to wireless to radio to VOD. The Style Network currently counts 65 million cable and satellite subscribers and Mystyle.com keeps women up to date on all the latest fashion and beauty news on the web. G4 is available in 68 million cable and satellite homes nationwide and G4tv is a top web destination for video game news and information. Copyright (C) 2010 Comcast Entertainment Group. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone & iPod are registered trademarks of Apple Inc.