KIND OF COOL:

The app, Shortcut, allows users to take a photo of newspaper pieces, magazine articles, advertisements, and even billboards and link them to a digital version on their phone. With a Path-like UI, users can then share, comment on, or store what they've found--or play with it if interactive extras are attached.

"The pitch when we talk to newspapers and printed publications is that we can make them interactive--and they don't need to place any QR codes anywhere," says Bay. "In addition, they can sell their advertisers on that interactivity. ... It removes the need for QR codes."

It already works with such publications as USA Today and the New York Post, and more are being added all the time. In practice, it is not a million miles from Google Goggles, but Shortcut has more focus.

The app--for iPhone, Android, and Windows Phone--is actually a retooling of a previous release known as Paperboy, chiefly for news media. That remains its strong point, as it recognizes more than 1,000 newspapers and magazines from all over the world. Through a partnership with the international media sales company Publicitas, however, Bay and his team realized they wanted to branch out to advertising--and that meant they needed to rework what they had done.

Even though Shortcut has broadened its remit a little, the reality is that Kooaba could actually apply its technology to any media: DVD cases, books, movie posters, CDs. Instead, the company has chosen to keep its focus narrow to try to gain traction.

"The thing with a startup is deciding where to put your resources," says Bay. "Newspapers and magazines are low-hanging fruit for our app, so we're focused on those for now."

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