Business news for Mon, 31 Dec 2007 & with words japan+popular. 2 news.

The prospect of making the world interactive through cell phones and QR codes--printed two-dimensional bar codes made popular in Japan--has two Long Beach, Calif. ad execs cozying up to high-tech thought leaders at companies like Nokia and Samsung.

[Technology] Continental Airlines kicked off a U.S. trial using paperless boarding passes with QR code--printed two-dimensional bar codes made popular in Japan--in early December. The bar code, issued to air travelers at Houston's Intercontinental Airport, is being used to verify passengers at the gate.