I won't tell you how long this announcement has been in the making, but this past Sunday, we finally announced our partnership with The Oregonian as the first newspaper in the U.S. to use digital watermarks to deliver enhanced, multimedia content from various images throughout the newspaper. 

The printed newspaper provides a bridge to their sister company's content online — giving readers the ability to access the rich, interactive content and deep links they go to the internet for directly from the printed page. To date, the content has been primarily video, slideshows and a list of links to enable readers to explore more on the stories they are most interested in.

So, imagine an article that captures your attention and you want to learn more. If you were surfing the web, you could quickly click on video content or hyperlinks to explore further. With the Oregonian, readers simply grab the smart phone that is likely sitting next to them, launch the Oregonian mobile app (for iPhone and Android) and point the phone at the article. Instantly they are connected to a whole new dimension of content from print.

News of the Oregonian has triggered a number of new inquiries from other newspapers and magazines looking for ways to engage readers and tie together print, web and mobile content and initiatives.  This is a really exciting time for the team here — it feels a little like giving birth. It took awhile, and the process was a tad bit painful at times, but when you hold the baby in your arms (in this case the Sunday Oregonian), you simply smile and say... it was worth it.