A campaign using barcodes to drive orders from print ads launched in Perth daily ‘The West Australian’ at the weekend.

PayPal Australia and Point and Pay worked with West Australian Newspapers to develop what they say is “a new shopping experience” using printed QR codes read by smartphones.

Saturday’s ‘Weekend West’ included a four-page advertising lift aimed at encoluraging readers to purchase products directly with their mobiles. Scanning the paper takes them to a simple purchase process through PayPal and the Point and Pay service.

PayPal says it expects to handle $10 billion in transacted mobile payment volume globally this year, more than double that processed last year.

And with increasing mobile use – Australia already has the second-highest smartphone and tablet penetration in the world – new applications including ‘second screen’ use are set to continue the digital revolution.

The WAN trial is a further move to help advertisers increase the value of their print media space. The solution developed by Point and Pay provides retailers with another channel to sell to the mobile consumer.

Managing director of Point and Pay Damian Cook says the system offers the ability to make advertising transactional so that consumers can buy directly from print, TV and outdoor ads with their mobiles. “It provides retailers with all the tools necessary to transact via smartphone, from QR Code technology to the mobile shopping cart, right through to fulfilment and courier integration,” he says.

WAN sales director David Bignold sees this as the next step in the evolution of print media: “We're excited to be the first daily newspaper to launch a fully transactional space to help local retailers reach consumers more effectively.

“This is just one example of how we'll be incorporating innovative digital content into our traditional portfolio."