Retailers have become highly motivated to modernize the in-store experience with digital signage. Photo courtesy BroadSign
Gathering the industry
The most recent Digital Signage Expo (DSE), which took place in March in Las Vegas, Nev., set a new record with close to 4,100 attendees, 42 per cent of whom where end users. And with approximately 1,940 exhibiting personnel from more than 200 suppliers—65 per cent of which were first-time exhibitors—total attendance topped 6,000 for the first time.
Based on employment estimates in the sector, this means about 10 per cent of the digital place-based media industry’s entire workforce attended DSE. The size of the exhibit hall also set a new record at more than 7,711 m2 (83,000 sf).
“When we opened the hall on Wednesday, March 11, attendees streamed in for more than 20 minutes, generating an energy on the trade show floor that lasted late into Thursday afternoon,” says Chris Gibbs, president and chief operating officer (COO) of ExpoNation, which produces DSE each year.
AV industry association InfoComm’s annual trade show, which was held in June in Orlando, Fla., also marked an upward turn for digital signage. Industry representatives declared a ‘tipping point,’ whereby the cost of not using digital signage—i.e. in the face of competitors—now outpace the actual costs of applying and operating the technology. This tipping point has been brought about through reduced prices and improved performance, particularly for media players with embedded software and, in some cases, self-monitoring capabilities, which mean many common problems can now be resolved without needing a site visit.
Interestingly, Networld Media Group’s Digital Screenmedia Association (DSA) repositioned itself in early 2015 as the Interactive Customer Experience Association (ICXA), expanding its scope from traditional digital signage to incorporate self-service kiosks, POS systems, mobile payment technologies and e-commerce. The first annual ICX Summit took place in Chicago, Ill., in late June and reportedly sold out.
Digital signage will continue to grow and evolve alongside other ‘ICX’ technologies to better serve organizations’ communication goals. New approaches to analytics, content playback and network management continue to be developed and, at the same time, new providers and champions of the medium continue to emerge. The future is bright for both the supply and application of digital signage
technology.
Lyle Bunn is an independent digital signage analyst, consultant and educator based in Brighton, Ont. For more information, visit www.lylebunn.com.
