Digital signage titan PRN acquired by Thompson for $285M

The big kahuna of the digital signage industry, PRN, has announced (just after pulling its IPO), that it will be acquired by French firm Thompson. From the PR:

"Out-of-home video networks are attracting a growing share of US advertising spend with a projected annual growth of over 25%. The growth of this market segment has been accelerated by advertisers' demand for alternative media reaching more engaged audiences compared to traditional TV advertising. In addition, this segment has benefited by the improving quality of data measuring the effectiveness of such out-of-home networks, and by the falling prices of networking infrastructure and flat-panel displays."
...
" The purchase price is approximately $285 million payable in cash, including a normalized level of working capital. Bearing in mind PRN's strong growth and profitability, the business meets Thomson's return and price criteria. The acquisition is subject to the usual regulatory requirements and is expected to close during the fourth quarter. PRN is expected to be accretive to earnings in 2006."

Read the rest of the article right now! Go here.

Digital signage firm Online-Kiosks.net changes name

Not particularly interesting digital signage company Online-Kiosks.net has decided to change it's name to StrandVision, because:

"StrandVision is a digital signage company and that is better reflected in our new name," explained Mike Strand, founder and CEO. "StrandVision continues the brand equity that was built over ten years in the bar code industry with my last company, StrandWare. StrandVision is a unique hosted digital signage offering with low startup costs, and we needed the company name to clearly explain the concept to the market." (from their PR)

Yeah. The first thing that I think of when I hear "StrandVision" is digital signage.

Toronto subway narrowcasting network expands

From BroadcastEngineering:

"The OneStop Network offers travelers a dynamic mix of news sports, transit information, and advertising, as well as community service information including Child Find announcements, emergency override messaging, and transit updates. With BroadView's software, the network is able to manage schedules that will include advertising that runs on all screens within the network as well as station-specific messaging.

"The use of smart ad technology enables effective targeting of content to the subway network’s large captive audience, according to Michael Girgis, president of OneStop Media Group. Using rich demographic data on subway riders provided by the TTC’s research department, signage advertising and other content can be tagged based on audience and other characteristics. An ad can be station-specific, based on retailers located in the vicinity, or language-specific — for station stops in Toronto’s Chinatown. Even current weather conditions can trigger programming – such as ice cream ads on a hot summer day."

Read the full article here.

Danish retailer conducts successful digital signage trial

From BroadcastEngineering.com:

"Danish retailer Matas recently completed a pilot program that replaced its static backlit in-store signage with LCD displays and a video projector powered by 10 MediaXtreme MX5 digital signage controller/players provided by Keywest Technology. The digital signage was deployed in late 2004 by systems integrator Dansk Data Display at a Matas retail store in Copenhagen.

"Matas ringed the top of its store with LCD displays and strategically stationed smaller LCD panels as end caps on shelves. The digital signage pilot included displays with video, overlay text announcing specials, and blend in graphics, including digital still images and digital merchandising posters. The video projector was trained on a translucent screen at the front of the store to attract traffic from outside.

"Based on the success of the pilot, Matas plans to deploy digital signage to two more stores in Copenhagen."

Here's the link.

WireSpring blog: Big news in digital signage acquisitions and IPOs

It's been a busy week over at WireSpring's weblog for digital signage and interactive kiosk projects:

"So once again the digital ink has barely had time to dry on my last blog article when along comes some news that changes my perspective. When I mentioned a few days ago that "the digital signage industry still lacks a presence on the public markets" (in "Digital signage firm Focus Media doing well on the public market"), I was thinking mostly about pure-play digital signage firms going public, like PRN was supposed to do all that time ago (see "PRN: A Digital Signage IPO Story" from May 2004). However, I neglected to mention the possibility that a larger, already publicly-traded company would acquire a digital signage firm, as has just happened today with 3M's acquisition of Mercury Online."

Check out the rest of the article, called "Big news in digital signage acquisitions and IPOs".

Telstra to launch digital signage network

Australian telecom provider Telstra is ramping up its digital signage activities, according to DC News:

"Research shows that 70% of purchase decisions are made after a consumer has walked into a retail location and stores like Circuit City and Best Buy in the USA are reporting big sales increases after installing a retail TV system. In the UK Tesco has been running a network for more than 18 months with major advertisers like Proctor and Gamble and Nestle cutting back free to air TV budgets in favour of in store TV systems. Among the companies set to trial the Retail. TV network in Australia are Woolworths in their Big W stores.

"The current state of the digital signage industry is strong and getting stronger. While the industry is still in early development mode, indications are that it will become a tremendously significant market in terms of revenues. Depending upon which market research firm you prefer, and how you slice the pie, digital signage is expected to surpass $2 billion in overall revenues by 2009 (see figure 1). The hardware and integration segment of this is somewhere around $500 million. By comparison, the data projector market, which has been developing for more than 15 years, is also around $2 billion.

Digital signage can be segmented into several different markets and categories. Cap Ventures in the US recently did a global study of the market. They estimate there are approximately 2.7 million potential sites for digital signage or “narrowcasting,” as they call it. Samples of this market total include more than 45,000 shopping malls, 794 airports, 1.12 million retail sites, 545,000 hospitality and entertainment locations, and 739,000 service-oriented locations such as financial and health service locations as well as service stations. The number of these locations that are currently using digital signage is infinitesimal compared to the total number of opportunities. The take-away message here is that there is tremendous opportunity in your geographic market, and probably among the customers you already serve."

This is a nice article, so you should read the rest of it here (free registration required).

InFocus Corporation acquires assets of The University Network narrowcasting provider

From BusinessWire:

InFocus(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: INFS), a worldwide leader in digital projection technology and services, today announced the acquisition of assets of TUN (The University Network), a leading provider of on-campus narrowcasting solutions. The transaction brings to InFocus a display footprint and network operating in over 75 major U.S. universities.

TUN's presence in the U.S. higher education market complements InFocus' brand leadership in education and development expertise in large display hardware and networking products. "Acquiring the assets of TUN marks a milestone in broadening our business model to include big picture solutions surrounding large format displays," said Kyle Ranson, President and CEO of InFocus Corporation. "We welcome TUN to the InFocus family, and are excited about the opportunities in the emerging narrowcasting industry."

Read the rest of the press release here.

FOCUS enhances digital signage player line

While not truly digital signage in my book (since that would require network-based remote management), FOCUS has added some new players that can be updated via smart card:

"FOCUS Enhancements, Inc. (NASDAQ SC: FCSE), continues to expand its technology portfolio for digital signage solutions with the introduction of its Visual Circuits Mantis line of multi-channel high-definition (HD) and standard-definition (SD) media players. The Mantis MC™ and Mantis MG™ provide on demand video playback for audience-driven applications including retail, museums, healthcare, malls, education, in-store broadcast networks, events, hospitality, banking and finance. The new Mantis media players are now available through FOCUS Enhancements’ network of authorized dealers.

"The Mantis MC Multi-Channel HD Media Player is designed to deploy cutting-edge communications, providing two channels of HD or SD video and 32-bit accelerated graphics. It is also available in a single-channel configuration that can be upgraded to two channels by adding a Smartcard. Mantis MC is a simple network 1U rack-mount player that takes all the worry out of loading HD and/or SD video through standard IT networks."

Read the rest of the press release here.

New WireSpring blog article: Digital signage firm Focus Media doing well on the public market

I recently added a post to WireSpring's Dynamic Digital Signage and Interactive Kiosks Weblog about Focus Media's success (so far) on the NASDAQ public exchange. Here's a snip from the article:

It's hard to tell whether US investors were more excited about the digital signage industry, or their ability to invest in a Chinese-owned firm, since that's becoming all the rage now. While I can understand investors' enthusiasm over getting involved in the world's most rapidly growing economic market, I personally would be even more excited by the company's claim that, "Focus Media has a presence in more than 10,000 commercial locations and over 400 retail stores in 44 cities throughout China. Since it commenced commercial operations in May 2003, Focus Media has placed 21,021 flat-panel television displays in high traffic areas, such as elevator lobbies of commercial buildings, retail chain stores, beauty parlors, karaoke parlors and golf country clubs" (Focus Media Announces Pricing of Initial Public Offering of American Depositary Shares).

That's over 21,000 screens, already bought and paid for, showing advertising in about 70% of the top commercial buildings in China. Their most recent SEC filings (PDF format) suggest they're on track to do about $32-36M in ad sales this year. While this is only a fraction of PRN's revenues, the breadth and depth of Focus Media's coverage, plus the fact that they've only been around since 2003, makes them a serious contender in the digital signage space.

Read the rest of the article, entitled "Digital signage firm Focus Media doing well on the public market."

WPP consolidates Mediaedge, MindShare into single out-of-home advertising firm

This news from the UK suggests that the out-of-home market is really heating up:

[O]ut-of-home [advertising] - whether it's on billboards, in cinema, elevators or even retail-based media networks - is looking like a surer bet for reaching "captive" audiences. That fact has not escaped the major agency holding companies, which have been reinvesting and restructuring their outdoor media assets in an effort to grab share in what is projected to be a rapidly rising market.

...
Those facts apparently have not escaped WPP chief Sir Martin Sorrell, who has been talking up the value and role of out-of-home, and who on Monday announced a restructuring that would combine the outdoor media operations of Mediaedge:cia and MindShare with leading out-of-home media company Poster Publicity to form a new entity: Kinetic.

...
Meanwhile, Miller estimates Kinetics global media billings to be about $2 billion, and projects it will grow by another $1 billion within a year, through a combination of "organic growth," acquisitions and consolidation with other WPP units. That, he says, would make Kinetic the world's largest out-of-home media buyer, surpassing Aegis Group's Posterscope, Omnicom's Outdoor Media Group, Interpublic's Outdoor Services unit, and Publicis' outdoor media operations.


Read the whole (very informative) article here.

Watchit Media to Pursue Future In Dynamic Narrowcasting Market

Cotelligent, now known as Watchit Media, has been in the business of rolling out their own digital signage networks for some time. But I guess the cash crunch has gotten to them, as they're divesting non-core businesses for cash now:

Cotelligent, Inc. (OTCBB:CGZT) today announced it has sold its sales force automation software and services solutions business to Fastech Integrated Solutions, LLC, an affiliate of Beverly Hills based private investment firm, Skyview Capital, LLC. The transaction, which closed Friday July 15, 2005, provided Cotelligent with $2.3 million in cash at closing and the potential to earn up to an additional $1.45 million over the next three years.

The divestiture required approval of Cotelligent's stockholders. A special meeting of the stockholders was held on Wednesday July 13, 2005. 15,849,909 shares, or approximately 56%, of Cotelligent's issued and outstanding shares of common stock, were voted at the special meeting with 15,538,079 shares, or approximately 98% of the shares voted at the meeting (approximately 54% of the shares outstanding and entitled to vote), voted in favor of the divestiture, 293,790 shares, or approximately 2% of the shares voted at the meeting (approximately 1% of the shares outstanding and entitled to vote), voted against the divestiture and 18,040 shares which abstained from voting.

The kinds of narrowcasting networks that Watchit focused on are notoriously hard to prove a ROI on, so that might have had something to do with it. Read the full press release here.

Military makes money from digital signage

From aka.tv:

"Private Display Network (PDN) offers the hardware, software and content management free of charge, and the revenue generated from sponsorship and advertising is split between PDN and the venue. The displays and digital menu boards, ranging from 20-inch to 100-inch, can show multiple content streams in separate panes, including national broadcasts, local information and commercial messages.

"'The system that we designed costs the military nothing and provides revenue back to the armed services almost immediately,' said Andrew Young, managing partner of PDN."

Read the rest of the article here.

Yet another digital signage ROI article

aka.tv has a nice introductory article about the necessities of quantifying the return on investment (ROI) for digital signage networks. While not as in-depth as my own analysis of digital signage ROI (links below), it makes some good points. For example:

[Beth] Corbett, whose New Media Services Group at Nielsen has provided research for private advertising networks since 1983, says that for digital signage to be taken seriously by ad buyers, it needs to develop a measurement system with a number of standard elements:

* First, she says, the system should be independent, to give credibility to whatever findings it makes. Individual networks all claiming the merits of their own products and customized measurement only serve to raise a question mark over that research, says Corbett.

* Secondly, any measurement system needs to be methodologically sound, with research taking into consideration the entire network through the course of an entire ad cycle, not just busy locations or days of the month.

* Finally, says Corbett, the system has to produce an end result that media buyers can recognize and integrate into their existing packages. “Ad agencies have to have a means of comparing the various networks to combine them in ad buys, and to understand how they fit in their total media mix,” she says.

Check out the rest of the article here. And when you're done, read my own articles on the matter here:

1: Calculating Digital Signage ROI: The Ground Rules
2: Calculating Digital Signage ROI: Understanding the Limits of Your Data
3: Calculating Digital Signage ROI: 3 Metrics that Matter
4: Calculating Digital Signage ROI: Methods to Gather your Data
5: Calculating Digital Signage ROI: Managing Expectations

Narrowcast network owners eye CBS broadband, notes WireSpring blog

A new article has been posted at WireSpring's Dyanamic Digital Signage and Interactive Kiosk Weblog:

A number of people wrote in asking if I was aware of any syndicated video services that could be used either for kiosk attract loops or narrowcast network content. At the time, I was only aware of a few services offered by the AP and Reuters. While I've found that these services can provide access to a huge database of video clips gathered from news agencies across the world, the overall depth of the content was mediocre (I think the average clip was only 30 seconds to a minute long), and video quality wasn't very impressive either.

That's why I'm so interested in a recent announcement by CBS, who is forgoing a traditional 24 hour TV news network in favor of an Internet-only broadband network that will provide high-quality live and stored video feeds on all major news topics, 24 hours a day.

What's really interesting is that CBS doesn't want to make a distinction between its television and Internet news services - the same staff will collect and generate news reports, and many of the same facilities and equipment will be used to produce spots for on-air and over-the-net broadcasts.

You can read the rest of it here.

Digital Signage for AV Professionals

Brad Gleeson, of ActiveLight fame, has been putting in some quality time over at Sound & Video Contractor. His latest article on digital signage notes that:

"Even as we admit the industry is still in early development mode, indications are that it will become a tremendously significant market in terms of revenues. Depending upon which market research firm you prefer, and how you slice the pie, digital signage is expected to surpass $2 billion in overall revenues by 2009 (see figure 1). The hardware and integration segment of this is somewhere around $500 million. By comparison, the data projector market, which has been developing for more than 15 years, is also around $2 billion.

"Digital signage can be segmented into several different markets and categories. Cap Ventures estimates there are approximately 2.7 million potential sites for digital signage or “narrowcasting,” as they call it. Samples of this market total include more than 45,000 shopping malls, 794 airports, 1.12 million retail sites, 545,000 hospitality and entertainment locations, and 739,000 service-oriented locations such as financial and health service locations. The number of these locations that are currently using digital signage is infinitesimal compared to the total number of opportunities. The take-away message here is that there is tremendous opportunity in your geographic market, and probably among the customers you already serve."

I'd recommend you check out the rest of the article, which can be found here.