New Digital Signage ROI Article published at WireSpring

The next part of my Digital Signage ROI study has been posted at the WireSpring weblog. Here's a snip:

Understand the Limits of Your Data Set

We've all heard the saying "numbers don't lie," and that's true. However, it's unfortunately also true that people do lie. Methodically. And perpetually. And in fact, even the best-intentioned people can get into trouble when analyzing data because their own hopes and beliefs will alter the way they interpret their numbers. So I'd like to point out a couple of common pitfalls and misunderstandings about data analysis that will hopefully spare you the embarrassment of being called a cheat and a liar the next time your customers ask you for the hard numbers.

T may install TV network to raise funds

Here's an interesting article from Boston.com describing a project to bring revenues to their aging subway system via advertising on a dynamic digital signage network. Here's a snip:

"Desperate to raise more money without increasing fares, the MBTA is preparing to install its own closed-circuit television network in subway cars and stations.

T officials said the plan, which calls for installing television screens inside subway cars on the Red, Orange, and Blue lines, could generate $3.5 million in advertising revenues a year. But the televisions would mark a dramatic change for America's oldest subway system."

Read the entire article here.

The Arbitron Cinema Advertising Study

Arbitron has published a new study about the effectiveness of advertising in cinemas (which may be of interest to captive audience network owners and operators). Here's their synopsis:

"American cinema audiences are younger, more affluent and surprisingly receptive to pre-movie advertising. The Arbitron Cinema Advertising Study: Appointment Viewing by Young, Affluent, Captive Audiences explores the significant advertising opportunity that can be realized by targeting this highly educated and active group of consumers.

The study, which includes a qualitative profile of moviegoers and details their media habits, finds that moviegoers do not mind cinema advertising and, in fact, view it more acceptable than advertising on the Internet."

Go to their page here, or download the pdf here.

Cotelligent Financial Research Reported by MicroCap.com

It's always interesting to read about the financial results of various digital signage companies. Here's a fluff-laden piece from Cotelligent, owner of Watchit Media:

"It's been several months since we last commented on CGZT and although the share price has been range bound in the low teens, corporate developments are moving along nicely and several important developments should occur throughout April and May. The most important of which should be the sale of their IT Consulting division and presentation before 90,000 broadcast professionals in Las Vegas.

Back in December we mentioned that Cotelligent was turning its entire focus to lead the market in narrowcasting and to do so, they would be selling their IT consulting division. This sale would provide a nice injection of capital and also eliminate a drain on cashflow. During the tech peak, Cotelligent was one of the leading technology consulting firms in the U.S. with revenue well in excess of $100 million and divisions in several countries. Unfortunately like so many others, they fell victim to overseas outsourcing and found it very hard to compete. Having built such a large corporation from the ground up, they had the expertise to refocus their resources on an area they felt would provide strong growth opportunities -- narrowcasting (explained below). Over a couple year period, divisions wound down and a restructuring process took place that should culminate in April.

The sale of this division is not final yet but we have every reason to believe something concrete will be announced in April -- the cash injection will not be large but it should keep the balance sheet nice and clean. During this restructuring phase, the stock has drifted quietly but after April, the CEO will be elevating their exposure to the investment community (brokerage presentations, etc.). They are following a methodical process (that has worked well in the past) to build a significant company again. While these changes will not occur overnight, it does make for a very strong mid to long term speculation when the stock is priced this low. After a few quarters of positive earnings again, we should find a significant difference in the share price."

Read the whole PR bit here.

New Digital Delivery Services Won’t Replace DVD, Says In-Stat

From eMediaLive:

"New digital delivery services are not likely to supplant the DVD business, but rather bring digital entertainment to people by adding either convenience or accessibility that complements what the "Packaged Goods" can provide, reports In-Stat. More consumers want instant access to video on their TV sets, portable devices, and cell phone handsets, but DVDs will continue to be a popular medium and will continue to experience substantial growth. The worldwide value of all published DVD products is expected to grow with a compound annual growth rate of 18.2%, from about $33 billion during 2004, up to $76.5 billion by 2009, the high-tech market research firm says."

Read the entire article, along with other useful stats, here.

Outdoor Ad Revenue Outperforms 2004 Predictions

From the OAAA:

"Outdoor advertising industry revenue rose more than expected year to date with a 6.5% increase for the first nine months, and a 3.6% increase for the third quarter.
...
Outdoor media performance was up in seven of the top ten advertising categories for the first nine months of the year. The most significant growth came in the Government, Politics and Organizations category with a substantial 42% rise due to political spending for the November elections. The rise moved Government, Politics and Organizations onto the top ten advertising categories list for the first time, knocking the Beer & Wine category off the list."

Read the article here.

OAAA Announces List of Contenders for 2005 OBIE Awards

From the OAAA website:

"The Outdoor Advertising Association of America is pleased to announce the 2005 OBIE Awards contenders. This year, 39 agencies will vie for Best of Show honors.

The OBIE Awards recognize creative excellence in outdoor advertising and is the oldest and one of the most prestigious awards in the advertising world."

The article is on their home page right now, but may move to a release/news page in the future.

You can get a PDF of the contender's list here.

Vancouver credit union unveils digital signage

As reported in Broadcast Engineering:

"In its $3 million branch office in West Vancouver, BC, the North Shore Credit Union (NCSU) has replaced its traditional backlit posters promoting financial services with the vibrancy of moving images. Everlasting Communication, based in North Vancouver, B.C., has implemented a digital signage solution at NSCU’s newest branch in The Village at Park Royal.

Fred Cook, NSCU's chief information officer, said that digital signage makes economic sense for the financial institution because static posters quickly become stale and replacing them frequently is cost-prohibitive.

Moreover, he said, digital signage enables NSCU to communicate a greater amount of information about its many products and services, while allowing flexibility, control, and the ability to keep messages fresh."

Read the article here.

Puerto Rican Network Impresses Viewers, But Struggles For Ads

From aka.tv:

"With a higher population density than any state on the U.S. mainland, the island of Puerto Rico might seem to present a perfect captive audience. But the operator of the Caribbean commonwealth’s main digital-signage operation admits that it is struggling to recruit advertisers to the new medium, despite data to suggest that his screens reach more than half the population every month.

Macar AIM (Advertising in Motion) completed the first of its Spanish-language Retail Media Network installations in Puerto Rican supermarkets in 2003, and is currently operational in 30 venues across the island, mainly in the Mr. Special, Super Max, Pitusa and Supermercados Econo chains."

Read the whole article here.

PlayNetwork Delivers Wave of Digital Signage to Hollister Co.

"The virtual surf is up at Hollister Co.!

PlayNetwork Inc. announced today at GlobalShop 2005 the release of a new case study highlighting the most innovative digital signage application in the retail industry -- live video footage of Huntington Beach, California (Surf City, USA), broadcasted and displayed on large "Video Windows" in Hollister Co. stores nationwide.

Hollister, a Southern California-themed brand of Abercrombie & Fitch, has integrated the real-life beach experience into its stores through a unique video solution, which features live footage from two cameras mounted at the famous Huntington Beach pier (one facing north and one facing south). The video feeds are distributed via closed circuit network and displayed in real time in Hollister stores on two large Video Windows, each measuring more than 5 feet by 5 feet and consisting of nine liquid crystal displays in a 3-by-3 configuration."

Read the whole release here.

Time called on New Zealand's first digital billboard

From the New Zealand Herald:

"The lights have gone out on Australasia's first digital billboard, with a split between partners putting the company behind it into liquidation at the end of its closely-watched trial run.

The giant LED screen that lit up the corner of Fanshawe St and Halsey St was turned off two weeks ago, awaiting the outcome of an application to the Auckland City Council which had granted the billboard a six-month trial in September.

But the council said yesterday the application had been withdrawn, while companies' office records show a liquidator was appointed to its owner, Digital Light Solutionz, on February 23."

Digital Light Solutionz never quite made it onto my radar, so I don't have any thoughtful commentary on the matter. But you can read the complete article here.

Republic Bank Upgrades In-Branch Digital Signage Network With FireCast Suite From WireSpring

WireSpring Technologies, a developer of software for digital signage and interactive kiosk systems, today announced that Republic Bank has chosen FireCast to power its in-branch digital signage network. Captive Indoor Media managed the deployment to 20 banking centers in Kentucky, which replaced a legacy system from Impart Technology Group.

Republic Bank uses the digital signage displays to inform and entertain customers while they are waiting for service. This allows them to present relevant product offers to help expand the relationship with each customer, such as offering preferred mortgage rates to existing checking account holders, while also reducing the perceived wait time and enhancing the customer experience.

"The banking industry is time-sensitive by nature," said Michael Sadofsky, senior VP of marketing for Republic Bank. "With the Captive Indoor Media system, we can inform our customers of product changes, upcoming promotions and other time-sensitive information with no delay. Through the use of this very dynamic system, we achieve our goal of getting the right message to the right people at the right time."

While other banks (most notably Washington Mutual) have deployed similar networks, the Republic Bank deployment is unique in that the displays appear not only in the branch itself, but also in the drive-through lanes. This ensures that all customers, regardless of service channel, are provided the same information about current loan rates, special account offers, and other relevant content.

"We're very pleased to work with Captive Indoor Media and Republic Bank on this deployment," said WireSpring CEO William Gerba. "Republic Bank's comprehensive approach to customer messaging, both in the branch and in drive-through lanes, provides a strong example of how banking organizations can use dynamic signage to enhance the customer experience."

In addition to in-branch digital signage networks, WireSpring also offers self-service kiosk solutions to help customers learn about bank products and services, apply for credit cards, and perform other tasks without having to wait in line.

To learn more about WireSpring's solutions for the banking industry, please read our free digital signage guide at http://www.wirespring.com/go/banks

For more information on Captive Indoor Media, please visit http://www.captiveindoormedia.com.

Note to editors: An illustration of bank digital signage is available at http://www.wirespring.com/images/press/20050322_bank_signage.jpg - high resolution photos are available upon request.

About WireSpring Technologies

WireSpring helps retailers, banks, and other venues reach customers at the point-of-decision using interactive kiosks and dynamic digital signage. The company's FireCast product line provides a complete solution for designing, deploying, and remotely managing global networks of self-service terminals and electronic displays, including dynamic advertising screens and in-store television networks. WireSpring is headquartered at 1901 West Cypress Creek Road, Suite 100, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309 USA. For more information, visit http://www.wirespring.com

Watchit to Narrowcast NAB2005 Convention

If you don't have your tickets to NAB 2005 yet, but you somehow did manage to get a hotel room in Vegas, then this might be for you:

"Watchit Media, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cotelligent, Inc. (OTCBB:CGZT - News), announced today on April 14, for the first time ever, the featured NAB-HD (high definition) initiative for the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) electronic media show will be presented via the Watchit Private Video Network(TM) to hotels in Las Vegas. NAB2005 is the world's largest electronic media event.

NAB2005 will be showcasing high-definition (HD) television this year by creating a television studio on the convention floor using state-of-the-art HD technology and equipment and presenting content live on large television monitors situated throughout the convention hall. Each day, NAB will edit segments of programming and send them to Watchit Media for presentation on WCN. "We will be reaching most NAB2005 guests and attendees with our narrowcast to our Las Vegas hotel clients," stated James Lavelle, CEO of Watchit."

Read the whole press release here.

Silver Beacon and Helius partner for digital signage content development

"Helius Inc., the worldwide leader in business-class data broadcasting solutions, announced today that Silver Beacon Media, a provider of Digital Display Network (DDN) solutions and technology, has joined its Strategic Alliance Program. The partnership will support the development of new and creative ways of consumer communication through passive and interactive digital signage networks."

Silver Beacon already partners with a number of digital signage hardware and software providers, and one other satellite broadband provider, MicroSpace, so I don't know if they're aiming to get out of that relationship, or if Helius has convinced them to go for a second source.

Read the press release here.

Part 1 of Digital Signage ROI Article Published

ROI being one of the most difficult numbers to uncover for some digital signage network operators, I've decided to try and put together a somewhat comprehensive guide to the tools and methodologies behind the calculation:

"In this, the first in a series of articles covering the basics of calculating digital signage ROI metrics, I'm going to start by introducing a couple of concepts to get you in the right mindset for determining your signage network's return on investment. In subsequent articles, I will try to provide some ideas and methodologies for accumulating and analyzing your data to come up with the magic number."

You can read the complete Digital Signage ROI article here, and take a look at other things in WireSpring's Dynamic Digital Signage and Interactive Kiosk Weblog.

Clarity Acquires CoolSign's Software

This is the big news of the day:

"Clarity Visual Systems, Inc. today announced the acquisition of the assets of the CoolSign software and services division from Adspace Networks, Inc. for an undisclosed sum.

As part of the deal, Clarity will acquire CoolSign's enterprise software, a sophisticated technology solution that delivers full-motion, high definition digital content for networked digital display systems, along with its enterprise sales, engineering, creative and client services teams located at CoolSign facilities in Burlingame, Calif. The purchase immediately adds over 3,000 digital signs to Clarity's installed customer base -- many of which are located at some of the country's best known retailers -- and provides an immediate presence in malls, theaters and other public advertising venues through the Adspace media network."

Read the press release here, and a related article from one of the local business journals here.

Helius, Inc. and Microspace Communications Receive ActiveLight's 2005 DIGI Award

Helius, Inc. (Helius), the worldwide leader in business class data broadcasting solutions, and Microspace Communications Corporation (Microspace), the leading provider of point-to-multipoint satellite services, today announced they are the recipients of a 2005 DIGI Award in recognition of innovation and excellence in the digital signage industry. The award was presented on March 12 at NSCA Systems Integration Expo in Orlando for their work on the StagePost/Flagstar Bank digital signage network.

Read the press release here.

Convergent powers digital signage at GlobalShop 2005

Convergent Media Systems today announced that for the second consecutive year it has been selected by GlobalShop to be the sole sponsor and provider of networked digital signage for the 2005 show. GlobalShop is the largest annual retail design and in-store marketing show in the world. It takes place at the Sands Expo in Las Vegas, March 21, 22 and 23.

At the entrance to the GlobalShop exhibit hall Convergent will display daily stories and events on its network of six large digital screens. Convergent's production team will re-purpose the content for the screens, which will include the news of the day, vendor-sponsored events, seminars, special award ceremonies, schedule changes and more.

At Convergent's booth, #4446, the company will also exhibit digital content from many of its retail customers, and offer an in-depth look into the technology and services that power today's digital signage networks.

BCI announces new video over fiber products

Broadata Communications, Inc. (BCI), a world leader in the development of cutting edge optical communications and optoelectronic technologies announces that it has enhanced the ScreenLink ™ Fiber Optic Transport System. This enhancement provides the unique ability to deliver High Definition (HD) video with tri-level synchronization, as well as Standard Definition (SD) video with bi-level synchronization. Currently, there is no other product offering this tri-level sync feature. The ScreenLink ™ now supports both the HD and SD specifications, as well as computer RGB video applications. This additional functionality provides complete support for high-level graphics cards at all output resolutions. This product development was motivated by the widespread adoption of HD video standards in the broadcast studio and digital signage marketplaces. Although the ScreenLink ™ is designed for remote, multimedia video presentation applications, it is equally suited for any high resolution imaging applications, including medical or professional audio video.

Read the complete press release here.

VertigoXmedia to Launch VertigoXG

"VertigoXmedia, a long-time developer of software-based solutions for graphics automation and channel branding, is making a big splash at NAB2005 with its new VertigoXG family of real-time broadcast graphics systems. A full-featured SD/HD graphics system optimized for use with the Producer Xmedia Suite, VertigoXG provides single- or dual-channel graphics and video playout capabilities for a wide range of advanced real-time broadcast applications."

This solution is a bit high-end for the majority of digital signage applications, however every once in a while somebody will need this kind of graphical power on the sales floor. Hope they're willing to pay for it :)

Read the press release here.

SMART offers Actalyst Touch Overlay

"SMART Technologies Inc. announces it is entering the fast-growing digital signage market with Actalyst(TM) interactive digital signage, a new product line that brings interactivity to large-area flat-panel displays. Actalyst interactive overlays, the first SMART products aimed at the digital signage market, are mounted on plasma displays or LCDs, making them touch sensitive. Using SMART's DViT(TM) (Digital Vision Touch) technology, Actalyst interactive overlays provide the high-performance touch accuracy and image clarity ideal for large digital signage applications and self-service kiosks in retail stores, hotels, trade shows, airports, museums and lobbies."

Read the press release here.

Pioneer Unveils big touch screen overlay

Pioneer's PR department says:

"At the Systems Integration Expo and Conference today, Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. introduced the PDK-50HW3 touch screen device designed to add touch screen capability to Pioneer's industry-leading 50-inch professional plasma displays. When the device is used with third party touch screen software it can transform most of Pioneer's 50-inch professional PureVision plasma displays into high resolution touch-screen monitors, creating the ultimate interactive tool at the office, in an information kiosk, on a showroom floor or for promotional purposes. Unlike other touch screen devices, the newly designed PDK-50HW3 is USB powered offering a one-wire solution for data and power. Since it is a bezel and not an overlay, the image quality remains crystal clear. It also comes equipped with a state of the art mouse pen."

Digit Professional introduces Solid State Content Players

While I'm not a particular fan of solid-state players (playback options are too limited for me), there is a certain sector of the market that seems to like them. For those people, it's worth noting that:

"Digit Professional introduced an array of cutting edge, cost-effective solutions at Euro Shop in Düsseldorf, Germany, with a special announcement to come at Cebit next week.

With the great success of the release of the Pro DVX F100 solid state video player, Digit Professional, Inc. has released a complete line of integrated LCD solutions for the retail markets powered by the Pro DVX F100. Starting with a 5" integrated LCD, the Pro DVX Monitor line also includes a 10.4", 15", and a 20". All of these solutions are compact, easy to use and cost effective."

You can read the press release here.

Chyron Reports Turnaround for 2004

Apparently hardware vendors in this insutry don't always make great margins:

"Chyron Corporation (OTCBB: CYRO), a leading developer of broadcast television graphics hardware and software, today announced a financial turnaround for 2004, with rising revenues and positive earnings in three out of four quarters as well as for the year as a whole. Revenue for 2004 was $23.2 million, 20 percent higher than the previous year's $19.4 million. Net income for the year was $305,000, or $0.01 per share, compared to a loss from continuing operations of $1.9 million or $0.05 loss per share in 2003."

Read the complete press release here.

Peerless Industries Introduces New Flat Panel Wall Mounts

Not the sexiest side of a digital signage network, but certainly a critical one:

"Peerless Industries, Inc., the industry leader in audiovisual mounting solutions, today introduced four new Universal Wall Mounts for large (32"-63") and mid-size (22"-37") flat panel screens. Designed for applications in high-traffic environments, such as retail stores, airports, stadiums, hotels and healthcare facilities, the new mounts ensure the safe and secure use of flat panels in crowded locations while providing a discreet look, space-savings and versatility for optimal public viewing. With easy assembly and installation, the new mounts allow professional installers a simplified set-up to help keep client projects on time and on budget. The new mounts will be shown for the first time in the Peerless booth (#536) at NSCA 2005."

To read the full press release, go here.

OOH Vision Networks Selects Helius and Microspace

Yesterday's news (literally):

"Helius Inc. (Helius), the worldwide leader in business-class data broadcasting solutions, and Microspace Communications Corp. (Microspace), the leading provider of point-to-multipoint satellite services, today announced a joint partnership with OOH (out-of-home) Vision Networks LLC (OVN) to implement OVN's proprietary digital signage network in more than 100 diners in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. OVN, based in Hazlet, N.J., delivers rich multimedia advertising and infotainment to provide dynamic media content to the consumer while providing a revenue stream to the diner."

I'm not sure if you can really boost sales or increase recall by placing monitors in diners, but you do get a captive audience for a while :)

Here's the full press release.

RETAIL SCREENS - 22,000 OR 77,000?

That's the headline over at AV Interactive, where they look at results from a recent industry study sponsored by Samsung. Basically, the bottom line is that the industry is still in its infancy, with only about 22,000 digital signs being used in about 11,000 retail outlets. Here's a snippet:

"The biggest non-electrical users, said RMS md Guy Vaughan, included department stores and supermarkets, which had an average of 25 screens in each store where displays were used for promotions. DIY stores and shopping centres using the technology averaged 11 screens per store, and 56 per cent of all the screens used were based on plasma technology."

Get the complete article here.

ClickZ Ponders In-Store Television Networks

Pete Blackshaw, on-call media expert for ClickZ Network, has some interesting thoughts about the burgeoning digital signage industry. Here's a snip from his article:

"Key Implications

Consumer accepted or not, the advent of Wal-Mart TV promises to rewrite the marketing script for manufacturers and their agencies. No one can really ignore this because, frankly, advertisers have nowhere else to run on the advertising front.

So don't be surprised if we begin to see more traditional agencies, as well as media integrator shops, start to form "retail advertising" groups, not unlike the recent burst of shingles around 'branded entertainment.'

We may also see a steady migration from Madison Ave. down to Fayetteville, AR. After all, who's going to advise all the legions of shopper teams about media optimization, RGM rates, and message rotation? In this new world, the guy selling Milk-Bones may well have a media buyer standing next to him."

Check out the rest of it here.

A kindred spirit

I ran across the blog of Keith Alexander, who shares some thoughts about interactive kiosks and digital signage networks that he has run across. It's good to hear other peoples' perspectives.

M:Metrics wants to monitor wireless data

While not totally related to digital signage, M:Metrics has an auspicious plan to become the ACNielsen of the wireless world. With more and more people clamoring for a way to monitor and audit digital signage content on-site, I could expect these guys to branch out in that direction, or face competition from a new firm.

There's an interesting article on the whole idea here.

Limelight Media starts Mobile Media Division

From PRWire:

"Limelight Media Group, Inc. (OTCBB:LMMG ) announces today that it is creating a Mobile Media Division and has hired Stewart Layton to serve as President of the division. The Division has been formed to take advantage of recent significant business opportunities in the outdoor mobile advertising space. Upon the anticipated closing of the agreement with OTR Media for the acquisition of the majority interest in OTR Media, Mr. Layton will assume the President position of OTR Media."

Limelight has been skulking around the digital signage industry for some time now, but their decision to start a mobile media division is a bit confusing to me. I think it must mostly refer to car-side and truck-side advertising, considering the wording of this paragraph:

"Digital Signage and Truck Side Advertising are the fastest-growing sectors in the out-of-home media industry. The OTH industry represents over $7 billion in advertising revenue per year and has experienced a predictable growth exceeding 8% per year. Over the last 20 years, the industry experienced only one down year in 1992. Fixed expenses are growing only at 3%-4% per year, which allows for increasing bottom line revenue recognition. Profit margins are nearing 60% with an expected growth rate of 12%-14% and an after tax revenue growth of 15%-18% per year. Considering that the number of vehicles on the road has doubled over the 20 years, this media option is attractive to advertisers, for it is a low-cost alternative for the number of impressions reached. With the fragmentation of audiences in traditional television media, the industry is expected to continue on its profitable growth cycle. The Company forecasts that revenue recognition in this sector will be about $700,000 during 2005 and $5 million in 2006 as the infrastructure is developed to generate sales."

Read the press release here.

China Subway Purchases Forty Inscriber Inca RTX Systems

According to AV Multimedia Producer:

"Inscriber, a subsidiary of Leitch Technology Corporation and a leading global provider of broadcast solutions, announced today that the Nanjing (Nanking) Subway Network, located in Nanjing, Jiang Su Province of China, has purchased forty Inscriber Inca RTX systems. The forty real-time data display and graphic systems will drive a new channel for subway passengers."

Read the full PR here.

CSI Offers RGB over Fiber

For anybody who needs to do long-haul video runs (say, from a server closet across a 100,000 square foot retail store, or something like that), comes this news from CSI:

"Communications Specialties, Inc. (CSI) has broken new ground with the introduction of the industry’s first “drop-and-repeat” fiber optic receivers for RGB and Stereo Audio. The addition of the 7223, 7225 and 7227 models to the Pure Digital Fiberlink 7220 Series marks the latest expansion of the only complete family of all digital RGB and audio over one fiber solutions.

As part of the 7220 Series, these units operate at 1310 nm and work with either single mode or multimode fiber. Optical signals are transmitted and received over a single fiber. Video resolutions supported include VGA, SVGA, XGA and WXGA (640 x 480 up to 1366 x 768), plus HDTV resolutions of 480p, 720p and 1080i (RGBHV format only). The receivers require no adjustments, equalization or de-skewing and use all digital processing. Only a box version is available; power supply is sold separately."

Read the full release here.

NSCA Expo coming up

Now's a good time to remind everybody that the annual NSCA Expo (arguably the first show to formally include digital signage), is coming up on March 7-12 in Orlando, FL.

Thoughts on Cinema Ads

I came across two stories about advertising in movie theaters today, one for (sort of, it's a press release), and one against.

First, the against, which is an editorial in the San Fransisco Chronicle titled "Skip the Cinema Ads" I can completely understand this person's perspective -- when I go and pay $9 for a movie ticket, I don't expect to be pummeled with advertisements when I sit down. Movie trailers? Ok, fine. But not ads for BMW or American Express.

But that's exactly what new technology from NEC is for. At least, it is according to this PR from them literally titled "NEC Solutions America Media Solutions Division to Present Digital Cinema and In-Theatre Advertising Solutions at ShoWest 2005". Here's the link.

Modulus Video Announces Powerful Real-Time, Full Resolution High Definition MPEG-4 AVC Encoder

This might be a bit overkill for most digital signage applications, however for those who need to encode a lot of content to MPEG-4, it might be a good solution:

Modulus Video, Inc. today announced its new ME6000, a powerful real-time, full resolution high definition (HD) encoder for broadcast and other quality-driven video applications. The new system will enable satellite, Telco, and cable service providers, and particularly new IP-based TV services, to provide consumers with the full visual impact of HDTV while using the least amount of precious bandwidth.

Read the full press release here.

NextWindow Large-Screen Touchscren Coverage

UI design weblog usernomics has some nice things to say about NextWindow LCD and plasma display touchscreens. From their article:

"NextWindow's Touch Screen ( Touchscreen ) Technology can be used to provide a unique Touch Screen solution - where not only is the Plasma, or LCD Display touch "enabled", but also an 'off-screen' touchable area, called a Panel. This off-screen area, or Panel, enables the user to utilize key icons, navigation keys, cross-selling buttons, and short-cuts to content, around the Plasma, or LCD Display and make these available to the customer at all times."

Read the whole thing here.

NEC WT600-DS84 “Dynamic Digital Signage”

Just in from Gizmodo, NEC has released an 84" rear-projection behemoth is light enough to be hung from a wall. Gizmodo complains about low resolution, but the thing was obviously designed for digital signage applications where resolution is not the most important thing (but size often is).

Read their article about it here.
Read the product page here.