Photos courtesy Intel
By José Avalos
Digital signage is everywhere. From retail stores to health-care facilities, from college campuses to transit stations, studies suggest more consumers see video on signs than on websites. This growth has surpassed expectations.
Estimates suggest the industry will continue to expand at a rapid pace to more than 22 million screens and 10 million media players around the world by 2015. According to ABI Research, combined spending on digital signage hardware and software is expected to grow from $1.3 billion in 2010 to $4.5 billion by 2016. PQ Media reports worldwide digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising revenues reached $2 billion in 2011 and Canadian industry analyst Lyle Bunn reports they are growing at a projected rate of 15 per cent annually.
Nevertheless, many digital signage suppliers and integrators face tremendous challenges trying to evaluate and compare various components and system options for a typical deployment. The process of acquiring hardware and software licences is time-consuming and costly—and this does not include the expense of creating and managing content.
Fortunately, the industry has seen new advances that are making it easier to evaluate options and deploy digital signage across various vertical market segments.
Remote management
The remote management of screens is one area where the industry continues to see progress and technological advances. It is becoming easier for digital signage operators to lower their total cost of ownership (TCO) by remotely diagnosing problems. And many report they can remotely fix those problems about 90 per cent of the time.
Remote management also boosts energy conservation and efficiency, as signs can be turned on and off remotely. This not only reduces energy costs, but also helps extend the hardware’s useful life.
Meanwhile, new software is providing simpler interfaces to allow the real-time creation and deployment of customized content, with control of each individual screen. The software is also being integrated with the media players.
Pepsi has integrated interactive digital signage, featuring commercials and nutritional information, into new vending machines. In addition to instantly updating on-screen content, they allow Pepsi to remotely manage inventory levels and schedule deliveries
Turnkey advances
Another trend has been the commodification of digital signage. Not only are the prices of liquid crystal display (LCD) dropping, but so too are the costs of entire systems.
Many aspects of a typical digital signage deployment are now available on a modular basis for easier integration into a variety of form factors, including traditionally mounted screens, interactive kiosks, whiteboards, digital endcap merchandising displays in stores or ‘intelligent’ vending machines.
Richer applications
Many rich-media applications that were not available to the broader market just a few years ago are commonplace today. Graphics chips’ processing capabilities continue to increase by 40 to 50 per cent each year and mainstream media players can mix and blend rich graphics and other content.
Digital signage can also be complemented by gesture-recognition technology, augmented reality (AR) applications, connectivity with mobile devices and/or social media networks.
