The Future Of Digital Signage

By Author: Steve Greshner
Total Articles: 2
Comment this article

Digital signage has existed for some time, in airports and on Amber Alert billboards, but many people haven't given much thought to the extended possibilities that interactive digital signage could allow.

Digital signage has existed for some time, in airports and on Amber Alert billboards, but many people haven't given much thought to the extended possibilities that interactive digital signage could allow.

In service applications and marketing, digital signage has come into its own. Computer controlled displays with integrated interactive displays and image capturing capability, tied into ever-expanding databases, can accomplish what many service and marketing professionals struggle to do: provide the right message to the right people, both at the right time and in the right fashion.

Let's look at some examples, first , that are already in use:

A mall in Seoul, South Korea, has installed 26 information kiosks, each integrating a motion detector and two cameras. Facial identity software estimates the visitor's age and gender and presents options based upon those estimates.

Interaction is by ...
... hand motions, rather than touch-screen technology. A 20 year old female visitor might be shown an ad for a clothing store's promotion, while a 40 year old man might be provided an ad for a steakhouse or a men's clothing store.

In Australia, a marketing firm is reading viewers' reactions to television commercials to gauge their effectiveness, while a Tennessee ad agency is offering a system to restaurants that uses facial recognition software to recognize repeat customers and cater to their preferences in seating, as well as offering automatic Facebook check-in.

These applications, however, barely scratch the surface of what is being done in a few airports around the world.

Travelers can purchase tickets at interactive kiosks, show their passports to the in-display camera, some of which also have RFID chip readers, and receive their boarding pass, without having to interact with a human unless they're checking baggage. Technology is currently under development which will allow baggage check-in without human intervention, as well.
Even that, though, is a scant sample of what is possible with the technology already available today. Let's now take a look at a thoroughly plausible example of what could be done today, if someone chose to put the pieces together.

John and Adrienne Adams are invited to the London wedding of John's partner, Ethan Malford. Unfortunately, John spends most of the week prior to their departure date on the road, and fails to have his travel agent arrange their flight. The day before he's to meet his wife in San Francisco for their departure to London, he goes online in a panic to make reservations.

Arriving home three hours before he and Adrienne need to be at the airport leaves him no time to get tickets beforehand. Leaving their San Bruno townhouse on the short taxi ride to the San Francisco airport, he hopes for good luck... Adrienne has chastised him more than once for failing to plan ahead, and he doesn't relish a repeat performance.

Arriving at International Terminal A, the couple approach an electronic kiosk, where John hopes to expedite their final arrangements. John uses these kiosks often in his business travel and he knows it will be faster than queuing up in a line at the ticket counter.

The facial recognition software recognizes John and audibly asks him if his pending reservation is the flight he still wishes to take. John answers yes, and the display asks if Adrienne Adams will still be traveling with him. The system even notes that John has sufficient miles in his frequent flyer account to provide them both a free upgrade to First Class for the lengthy flight.

A few questions and answers has John and Adrienne on their way to Gate A 10 in less than 5 minutes, with their boarding passes in hand. Adjacent to their gate, John delivers their three check-in bags to a robotic baggage chute, where the RFID chips in their passports and boarding passes are scanned, and they receive their baggage stubs.

Eighteen minutes after leaving their taxi at the curb, they are seated comfortably in First Class, where they find a glass of champagne, a dry vodka martini and the obligatory bowl of peanuts waiting for them - the same drinks they always order when flying.

About eleven hours later, as they leave the jet-way at Heathrow, more facial recognition software causes an overhead monitor to display this message:

"Passengers Johnathon and Adrienne Adams, Welcome to London! Your limousine driver will meet you as you exit customs to bring you to the Malford estate. -Ethan"

Claiming their baggage is painless, as RFID scanners alert them as their bags are exiting, and confirm matching data. They're soon seated in their limo, as the driver stows their bags in the boot.

As you can see, John and Adrienne only interacted with their taxi driver and stewardess before facing the UK Customs Agent. When you think about it, customs screening could also be done electronically, and Google has already logged thousands of accident-free hours with driverless cars... taxis would seem to be a logical first step in commercialization of that technology. You can expect to find interactive digital displays in those cabs, as well.

Digital signage is rapidly becoming a popular method of timely presentation of marketing messages. The fact that interactivity can also be integrated with that technology opens a whole new set of possibilities. Some express uneasiness with trusting so much of our lives to machines and software, but others respond with the logical argument that machines are much more consistent than humans, and often, are more reliable.

So next time you encounter some form of digital signage, take a moment to consider what additional functions might be added to improve its use. Maybe the next time you visit that location, you'll find it's been upgraded.
Resource: http://retailradio.biz