Shazam Gets Visual Recognition (Sort Of)

Your favorite music discovery app is about to get a new feature: the ability to Shazam images.

Shazam on Thursday introduced new visual-recognition capabilities, so you can scan things like posters, packaged goods, and print media to get more info about the featured content. At this point, the feature is fairly limited, however, as it only works on images that specifically include the Shazam camera logo or a QR Code.

Here's how it works: Beginning today, those with the latest version of Shazam installed on their phone can open the app and tap the new camera icon to scan an image. When you see the Shazam camera logo or a QR code, just wave your phone over the item to unlock "interactive content, special offers, and [the] ability to purchase items or share them with others."

Shazam is launching the new feature with a number of partners, including The Walt Disney Company, which has created the first visually Shazamable ad for its Tomorrowland movie. Other partners include Target, HarperCollins Publishers, Esquire, SELF, Time, and The Wall Street Journal. Target, for instance, is planning to leverage the feature to let you scan its print and TV ads to buy featured products from your phone.

"The introduction of visual recognition is another step on our journey to extend the ways people can use Shazam to engage with the world around them," Shazam CEO Rich Riley said in a statement. "For brands, we're providing a near-frictionless way to engage customers on their mobile devices, with a single tap of a button."

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The new feature will live alongside the existing Shazam audio functionality we all know and love, so don't worry about that going away.

If you're going to try out the new feature, Shazam suggests holding your device 4 to 7 inches away from the interactive image, and giving your camera some time to focus. If you're scanning in dim light, you can also use the flash on your device.