Second Cup Launches Innovative Way to Help Smart Phone Users Navigate to Second Cup Cafes With Winvolve Inc. Layar B.V.

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(March 15, 2010) - Second Cup – Canada's largest specialty coffee franchisor – has launched a cafe locator using the Augmented Reality Browser Layar. Android and iPhone 3GS users can now go to the marketplace or 'apps' store, download Layar and search for the Second Cup Locator. Users can navigate to Second Cup cafes by choosing between a Reality View, a (Google) Map, or List view.

"We're very excited to be partnering with Winvolve to make it easier for our guests to find their way to their favourite coffee. This new real time 3D technology is very exciting, and with this application, no matter where they are, our guests will be able to find their way to the nearest Second Cup" says Natasha Mackow, Manager - Promotions & Communications for The Second Cup Ltd.

Mathijs Gajentaan, CEO and co-founder of Winvolve said " Second Cup, a truly iconic Canadian brand, is a forward thinking company and we are very excited to have had the opportunity to develop this application."

To use the technology, a user downloads Layar and selects the Second Cup locator. The locater activates the camera function of the Smart Phone and, as the user points their Smart Phone around them, Second Cup logos appear on top of the reality, to indicate the location of Second Cup cafes. Navigation is possible through either the Reality View, Map view or List view.

The application helps navigate to cafes and is nicely integrated with Google Maps. The user can also call the cafe from within the application and access the Second Cup website.

Gajentaan said, "We see a lot of Interest in Augmented Reality, Apps and ways to put new technology to use. Second Cup understands the value of offering their clients these innovative location based services by means of Layar as a way to drive traffic.

More and more brands are using applications such as Layar to help consumers find, discover and navigate to their businesses. We are one of the first media development companies to see this important trend and we have developed and worked with a number of brands. Experiences can go beyond finding. Actions like playing music or video can be triggered and you come closer to the target or point of interest. It opens up a whole new world of marketing, creativity and business."

Claire Boonstra co-founder of Layar B.V. said "It is very exciting for us to see great North-American developers like Winvolve create these amazing Layars for big brands. Layar B.V. is continuously developing the Layar platform and making it possible for developers to build new, innovative and exciting experiences which can also include 3D elements and gaming. We expect to expand to other mobile platforms besides iPhone and Android in the near future and will announce a large mobile pre-install deal soon, which will really get the Layar platform going 'mainstream'. 

About Winvolve Inc.

Winvolve is a new media development company specializing in augmented reality experiences, mobile technology and interactive websites and 3D animation. Winvolve is the representative partner for Layar B.V. in North-America.

About Second Cup

Second Cup is Canada's largest specialty coffee franchisor. Since its inception, Second Cup has grown to more than 340 cafés across Canada and over 50 cafés internationally.