Europe’s biggest event for digital media networks and content “In-store and Out-of-home” is back for 2008. In its third year, more than 100 exhibitors from 15 nations and 3500 visitors from over 40 countries are expected to participate in Screen Expo Europe, which takes place at London’s National Hall, Olympia, 5-6 February.
The event will bring together a broad range of offerings from true specialists in the screen media sector, including: Displays, Hardware, Software, Self-service, Technology solutions, Network Owners, Agencies and Content professionals.
Exhibitor Highlights:
3M Digital Signage will demonstrate how Vikuiti™ Rear Projection Film is able to revitalise window displays and transform them into high street attractions. A demonstration of the film combined with Visual Planet’s transparent ViP Touch Foils will also be shown highlighting how window interactivity allows passers-by to learn more from the retailer at any time of day by simply touching the front of the glass. Multimedia content will be presented on the interactive screen surface using dynamic 3M Digital Signage software, which offers the ability to manage content distribution and playout remotely, and even to deliver different messages at different times of day at multiple sites, according to the changing audience profile.
As one of the leading suppliers of content to the digital screen media market, BBC Motion Gallery is participating in The Content Theatre. Paul Maidment, business development director, will present the trends within the industry for best practice content usage, showcase some successes (and a few failures) and point the way forward for how network owners and brands alike should look to engage audiences in the future. In addition, some of the BBC’s new short programme content will be showcased on the screens around the show. Series examples include “Sporting Bloopers”, “World’s Wonders” and “Animals are Amazing”.
BlueFox multimedia content provider will demonstrate its ability to produce custom programming for digital screens in private and public spaces. The company provides a range of services from simple video database to the complete creation and packaging for an internal channel. Having developed exclusive partnerships with French and International producers, BlueFox has a programme catalogue of thousands of hours, divided into ten major themes from sport, travel, French regions, to animation or life style. BlueFox also offers a large selection of services from traditional news, weather or horoscopes to cultural happenings, cinema and events.
International digital signage software company BroadSign, Screen Expo title sponsor, will show its BroadSign™ Suite of hosted solutions for managing digital signage networks in stores, restaurants, shopping centres and transportation hubs. The company recently launched an advanced enterprise-scale software platform bringing a new level of automation for more efficient campaign execution and real-time reporting. The BroadSign Suite 6.0 SaaS offering enables network operators to realise the narrowcasting benefits of digital signage networks by automating the playlist compilation process through a dynamic programmable loop.
Portuguese new media solutions provider Dot One New Media (DONM) will use the show to present its Network Partner Programme in the European Union for the fist time. The programme, already implemented in the Belgium market, was developed for foreign companies in order to benefit from DONM’s experience in developing innovative communication and advertising networks for the out-of-home and in-store audiences. The company is focusing on multinational projects which require the installation of screen media networks in several European countries simultaneously.
Euro Electronics (UK) Ltd (EEL), a leading digital signage hardware platform provider, will be demonstrating its high definition multimedia player HDMP-5000. This compact but very powerful player offers HDMI as well as VGA outputs to transmit all video resolutions including 1080p. EEL is seeking partnerships with software developers and systems integrators to promote the very best in digital video signage.
Show visitors can expect to see an event first on the Expo TV stand – an entirely open house demonstration of an operational digital signage network. From content creation to distribution to display, Expo TV will be revealing how great content is generated, edited, distributed and then displayed on a total of 16 screens positioned strategically around the event. The screens will comprise a mixture of passive and interactive displays to further demonstrate the diversity in digital signage today. All of this will be demonstrated by Expo TV and powered by Nexus Digital Signs.
IQ Digital Media Networks Ltd, a full service screen network support partner that establishes, installs and manages screen networks on behalf of media owners and retailers will have its own stand at Screen Expo. IQ will show its range of support services including installation, maintenance and warehousing, helpdesk and remote engineering, content strategy, production and distribution. IQ is also part of the newly launched Screen Media Group Limited, founded to meet the comprehensive requirements of the digital media network sector.
Match Day Media Limited will be showcasing entertainment-led content tailored for major football stadia and music arenas, including infotainment services, XML-driven automatic programming, SMS and MMS integration with screen systems, automated music channel with digital download capability and integrated Bluetooth solutions for locational marketing.
Minicom Advanced Systems, expert in audio/video and serial distribution systems for digital signage and manufacturer of KVM solutions for remote server management, will demonstrate its innovative technology at the show. The company just launched the PX – the first KVM IP Gateway designed to answer the needs of both data center managers, business administrators and remote support providers. The smart and compact single-port device is the latest cutting-edge IP solution from Minicom, providing secure BIOS level access to computers or servers over a standard Web browser.
Panasonic System Solutions will be showcasing a number of products amongst which will be its NMstage digital signage software and large screen display system, Astrovision. NMstage is a one-stop communication solution that allows businesses to deliver tailor made content such as news, stock information, weather, special offers and emergency messages to their desired audiences in real-time at the touch of a button. Astrovision is a large scale LED display system which, in the last 20 years, has appeared on the street corners of the world including the famous landmark in New York’s Time Square, as well as in sports stadiums providing viewers with instant replays, ongoing action, and late-breaking news.
Radiant Europe, specialists in enabling technology for digital signage networks, will show Ryarc Corporation’s powerful and easy to use CampaignManager® digital signage software suite for small screen networks as well as larger network operators. The software enables users to create unlimited ‘play lists’, movies, web pages, images and animation, and distribute them to display devices, locally or over the internet. Radiant’s Eurosign product, a high impact, large format digital sign combining a vibrant LCD display, sophisticated media player and powerful signage software in an integrated platform, will also be on display.
This year Remote Media will be launching impressive 57” 4-sheet and 70” 6-sheet digital posters, 40” and 46” all-in-one displays incorporating screen, player and signagelive® digital signage software, and a 40” ultra-slim video wall. New video streaming IP TV will also be on display along with other products in the signagelive® portfolio including 32” and 46” digital posters, a freestanding 42” interactive digital poster and shelf edge solutions. Live demonstrations of Remote Media’s award winning Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) digital signage platform will be held on the stand over the course of the two days.
Multimedia messaging company Saturn Communications Ltd will unveil the next generation of Connectvision software, a powerful information communication, media distribution and data integration tool. Digital signage is just one of a wide range of Connectvision screen-based applications. From call centres and national corporate office employee communications networks to travel agency and automotive distributor support. It has a proven track record and rapidly expanding blue-chip client base – British Gas, BT, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, IBM, Thomson and Volkswagen.
STRATACACHE’s digital signage solution, ActiVia for Media, will be displayed on the stand. This highly-optimised, web-based solution for powerful digital marketing provides centralised configuration management, monitoring, content scheduling, distribution, playlist control, and reporting for digital signage networks of up to 250,000 concurrent devices. It combines STRATACACHE’s patented content delivery platform with state-of-the-art digital broadcasting technology allowing customers to deliver mixed media content to plasma screens or digital playout devices around the globe.
Tapinto Ltd., the company behind a bespoke in-car touch screen directory system is using the show to announce its availability worldwide after being pioneered in private hire cars in Edinburgh. Private hire cars are fitted with a special headrest comprising an 8” touch screen displaying news, weather and sports updates, advertising opportunities and public information for residents and visitors to any city. Its unique, interactive directory system allows passengers to navigate through a range of categories and download information such as tourist maps or special offers for pubs, clubs and restaurants via Bluetooth onto their mobile phone.
TruMedia Technologies will present its real-time audience measurement solutions that deliver accurate viewing measurements for out-of-home advertising on posters, digital signs, TV monitors, display windows and in-store product displays. Products include the new Version 1.4 of iCapture which provides gender and age-group segmentation, and extended viewer tracking. The solutions analyse face images of people watching the displays to generate true, real-time viewing data such as individual exposure times and indicators for attention or level-of-interest.
Spanish-based Wututu will use the show for the official European introduction of its Person Counter audience measurement device for reliable out-of-home advertising and its Scr3enD product, which allows the visualisation of images that seem to jump off the screen without using 3D glasses. Person Counter captures spectators’ facial geometry in public places and generates statistical data about the audience for its latter analysis and software processing. Scr3enD, on sale at the end of 2008, includes a software pack for conversion of 2D images into 3D format, as well as the development of 3D images from scratch.
Screen Expo Learning Programme:
Four show-floor theatres make up this year’s Screen Expo Europe 2008. The Network Owners’ Pavillion is an exclusive for 2008 bringing major European networks together with the top media buyers, advertisers and brand owners. Participating companies include Grand Visual, Match Day Media, Point Four, Obus plc, Big Media, i-Design / ATM Ad., Mood Media and Insight Media.
The Content Theatre, The Advertising Theatre and Thought Leadership Pavillion will feature high profile speakers from companies including BroadSign, BBC Motion Gallery, Remote Media, 3M Digital Signage, innoea Consulting, Dagobert, AMiGO, The Sound Agency, Focus on Emotions, Boomerang Media, Wututu, IMTV – Cabtivate Media, ScreenVisuals, TruMedia, Shoppercentric, EnQii, Digital View, Retail Radar and Omnivex.