Video becomes reality for Stuprint.com

Print broker Stuprint.com claims it is the first UK company to offer augmented reality (AR) across its entire printed product range.

The South Kensington-based company launched its first AR campaign in September for an amateur dramatics group at Cambridge University.

Students from the group recorded a video related to their latest production using a mobile phone and edited the clip using software on their own iMac computer.

This video was sent to Stuprint.com who worked with app provider Aurasma to create the AR video to apply to 10,000 A6 flyers.

The Aurasma app works by identifying a 'trigger' image within the artwork that activates the video clip on mobile phones and tablets and does not require a specific image or barcode, such as a QR code, to be included in the design.

Stuprint.com managing director Chris Hughes said that the company had also recently experimented with applying the technology to clothes printing, a venture which he claimed was a success.

He added: "We do not know which direction this will take, it is very much customer-led depending on what they can do with it."

Stuprint.com is recruiting a new employee with strong video editing skills in the next few weeks in order to offer more sophisticated video capabilities for customers.

Hughes believes the technology will have "massive value" for the live entertainment industry. He has targeted comedy clubs, amateur dramatics clubs and graphic design agencies and is interested in working with student newspapers.

He said: "I don’t know why the technology is not bigger than it already is. It is certainly the future and there is some really interesting stuff to come along with it."

Hughes and three fellow students formed Stuprint.com during their time at Oxford University in 2007.

Hughes said that the company has recently "shot up" to a turn over of £250,000 from £60,000 steady income over the years due to a focus on search engine optimisation and web marketing.