Trending Quick Responses

The idea of QR (Quick Response) Codes was first brought to my attention perhaps a month ago as I was sitting in class. Anyone can google images or check out a wikipedia page to figure out what the scope of application is for them. However, now that I'm well aware of the technology, it's weird how frequently I've seen them pop up in my scope of work.
First, just a couple days after we discovered the applications of QR Codes, a fellow Signs By Tomorrow franchisee emailed us a picture of his newly wrapped company vehicle. I mean I wasn't exactly our company's most prized possession for being able to reiterate what I had read on QR codes during the previous class to the rest of the guys I was working with, but it was pretty interesting to actually see the trend emerging in real life applications (on this side of the hemisphere).
To be honest? This "cool" trend isn't really all that cool. It's a fad that I really don't want to participate in. I'm one of those people that can really be a baby at times and put my foot down (can't wait for the ups and downs for future relationships), but hey, it is what it is at this point! But seriously, this is a capitalization on the smartphone and microcomputer technology to hook people in a creative manner. Whether promotional uses, discount club members, or unique tag lines in a way that will embed itself into people's minds, the trend will only be successful for the early mover advantage. As soon as companies are labeled with followers of the trend, they lose their credibility and it loses the impact of the overall messaging.