Three screens on a motorbike – a mobile advertising platform for the city Back to the future – making museums more interactive with tech Also in this issue: Using digital signage to create a playable neighbourhood CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT TECHNOLOGYKDS EUROPE MEDIA PACK 2024 Make the most of your presence; be part of the KDS Europe family and discover how you can make the most of your presence in the UK’s leading technical journal for hardware, software and component manufacturers, integrators and service providers and deployers of self-service terminals, digital signage and wayfinding. Contact sales@kdseurope.com to discuss with our team. Happy New Year (if we’re still saying that – it’ll be Christmas again before we know it). We bring you the good, but not unexpected, news that there’s increased demand for self-service solutions, with applications in retail and healthcare and advances in touchscreen technology as the main drivers. This is partly down to changes in customer expectation and, of course, advances in AI and cloud technology. In this issue we look at some of these most exciting developments, including motorbike screens and the data harvesting opportunities presented by kiosks. In the words of one of our contributors, “Kiosks do what they are told and remember everything.” The possibilities are endless. Enjoy this issue and, as ever, please do get in touch with feature ideas and news for forthcoming editions. Hazel Davis Editor EDITOR’S NOTE Would you like to contribute to KDS? Please submit news stories, articles, press releases and industry expert opinions to Hazel Davis. Please include high resolution (300dpi + CMYK) images. We publish news and articles that adhere to our editorial guidelines free of charge. This ensures our content is unbiased and relevant to our industry. The views expressed in the articles and technical papers are those of the authors and are not endorsed by the publishers. CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT TECHNOLOGY Publisher: Abacus Communications Editor: Hazel Davis Advertising: sales@kdseurope.com www.kdseurope.com Surrey Technology Centre, Surrey Research Park, 40 Occam Road, Guildford, GU2 7YG ISSN 2756-1097 The author and publisher, and its officers and employees, do not accept any liability for any errors that may have occurred, or for any reliance on their contents. All trademarks and brand names are respected within our publication. However, the publishers accept no responsibility for any inadvertent misuse that may occur. This publication is protected by copyright © 2024 and accordingly must not be reproduced in any medium. All rights reserved.Kiosk and Digital Signage 3 CONTENTS 4 News 10 Using digital signage to create a playable neighbourhood 14 Future past: making exhibitions more interactive with technology 18 Three screens on a motorbike? A mobile advertising platform for the city 20 Why kiosks hold the key to data harvesting in 2024 22 What’s next for AV technology 24 How to get a better ROI from your digital signage 28 The potential of LED displays in the hospitality industry 30 How customer benefits will drive the EPoS evolution 32 Roundtable: How to design effective communication in buildings 14 Future past: making exhibitions more interactive with technology4 Kiosk and Digital Signage Major expansion of Sainsbury’s Live digital screen network Nectar360 is to more than double the number of digital advertising screens in Sainsbury’s stores as a major expansion of the Sainsbury’s Live network. The operator of Nectar, the UK’s largest loyalty coalition programme, plans to expand its connected digital screen network in Sainsbury’s stores to more than 800 screens, in conjunction with out-of-home media company Clear Channel UK. The Sainsbury’s Live network already reaches millions of shoppers each week through its UK-wide network of over 320 digital screens at store entrances. Clear Channel now plans to upgrade existing units and expand the external screen network to include 420 screens, while also launching up to 400 internal screens. The introduction of the 75in screens in-store is aimed at giving Sainsbury’s and other brands greater flexibility to tailor advertising campaigns according to location, events, weather, competitions and other relevant factors – thereby enhancing brand awareness and memorability. They will also reflect the companies’ joint commitment to sustainability. The entire network will be powered by Sainsbury’s renewable energy and Clear Channel’s external Waferlite screens, being up to more than 50% energy efficient. “The digitisation of the store environment is expected to be the next evolution of retail media networks, so it’s im portant that we connect our digital capabilities across channels,” said Amir Rasekh, MD, Nectar360. “Over time, the Sainsbury’s Live partnership will play a part in allowing us to connect our entire retail media offering through ad tech – in-store, on-site and off-site – using our rich insight to enhance the customer journey.” The announcement comes as Nectar360, Sainsbury’s and Clear Channel celebrate 25 years of partnership. A new standard in large format displays NEWS CDS has introduced its Glorystar Infinitus Touchscreen Signage, heralding a breakthrough for businesses seeking to boost their customer experience on expansive 32in and 43in displays. Boasting anti- fingerprint and anti-glare touch glass, swift and sensitive responsiveness, and a sophisticated metal housing and bezel, this upgrade is tailor-made for applications such as gaming tables, digital whiteboards, and corporate signage, to name a few. The unit’s versatility allows installation in portrait, landscape or face-up orientation, delivering outstanding colour performance, high contrast, and wide viewing angles. Its resilience is evident through adherence to the 60950-1 ball drop proof testing standard, ensuring durability in large format displays. CDS touchscreen signage features anti-fingerprint and anti-glare touch glass, crafted to resist fingerprints and glare, ensuring a crystal-clear display even in bright environments. The upgraded signage features a robust metal housing and bezel, providing heightened durability and protection against damage. Incorporating LED backlighting reduces power consumption and heat, enabling sleeker kiosk designs for diverse applications in retail, hotels, gaming, transportation and more. The Infinitus has undergone more than 20 reliability tests, achieving a demonstrated 50,000 MTBF. The integration of Glorystar touchscreens, software and drivers ensures seamless performance. The Glorystar Infinitus offers three distinct platforms, each with unique advantages: >Android Platform >Windows Platform >Touchscreen MonitorKiosk and Digital Signage 5 December 2023 marked 10 years since the launch of imageHOLDERS. The design and use of digital kiosks has evolved rapidly during this time, keeping up with the exponential rate of change in screen and device technology. Founded by Adrian Thompson, Thompson’s vision was to make technology accessible to all. However, with tablet technology not on the open market till the late 2000s and the first Apple iPad only being launched in 2010, imageHOLDERS was very much ahead of its time. By 2013, technology had evolved sufficiently for Thompson to turn his business vision into a reality, and he launched imageHOLDERS fully in December 2013. The past decade has seen years of collaboration with clients, bringing visions and goals to life through design-led, customer-focused solutions. imageHOLDERS innovation has been recognised around the world. Notably, imageHOLDERS was presented with the ‘The Queen’s Award for Enterprise’ for the category of international trade in 2021. Chief solutions architect and founder, Thompson said: “We listen intently to our client’s needs and the user journeys they want to implement; we essentially wrap the technology required to facilitate those journeys into user-centric well-designed experiences. We take the best of consumer design and apply it to commercial products for business. This is the key to our success.” A market leader in offering world- class, award-winning digital solutions, imageHOLDERS now operates on a global scale with offices in Canada, Australia, and the US and with major blue-chip clients within airlines, retail, hospitality, banking and healthcare. Pete Thompson, VP of sales for North America and co-founder of imageHOLDERS, said: “The self- service kiosk industry is a fascinating space that combines the latest in technology, including software, connectivity and device hardware with the need to create seamless user experiences through superb aesthetic and ergonomic design and utilisation of the latest in manufacturing technology and materials. These different disciplines all need to be fully considered in the generation of a successful self-service kiosk. Taking this complexity and refining it into world-class solutions continues to motivate and inspire us to continue developing and delivering.” 10 years of imageHOLDERS Subway to introduce self-serve kiosks across the UK Subway is to launch self-serve kiosks across its UK outlets as part of wider business transformation aimed at enhancing the company’s brand and digital experience. The move comes after Subway launched its biggest menu change in nearly 25 years by offering 15 sandwiches with set fillings alongside its existing fully customisable offering. UK-based Subway franchisee The Daljo Group, which runs more than 340 outlets across East Anglia, the West Country and South West England, confirmed the latest plans for self-service units in a social media post. “Subway is gearing up for an exciting future with the upcoming introduction of kiosks. Team Daljo, along with franchisees, recently had the pleasure of checking out the equipment,” it wrote on Linkedin. “The anticipation is building, and we’re eager to witness these kiosks in action at some of our locations soon.” Subway, one of the world’s largest restaurant brands, is in the midst of a multi-year transformation journey towards becoming a more contemporary brand, with other developments including improved interiors and third-party delivery experience. The company owns more than 2,000 UK sites, the majority of which are operated under franchise. Subway was acquired by affiliates of Roark Capital for a reported $9.55 billion (£7.6 billion) last summer.6 Kiosk and Digital Signage Alfalite has announced that Italy’s Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia (Experimental Cinematography Centre), the oldest film school in Western Europe, has acquired its Modularpix Pro LED panels with ORIM technology for its new virtual production studio. The deal has been carried out by Broadcast Digital Service (BDS), the brand’s local distributor for the Broadcast and VP XR markets. The Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia was established in 1935 in Rome and aims to promote the art and technique of cinematography and cinema in the country. It is the most important institution in Italy for education, research and experimentation in the field of cinema, and in its broadest sense, film, documentary, fiction and animation. The institution has added a new virtual production studio, which has just been officially opened, to train its students in VP and XR technologies, which are gaining ground in the entertainment, film, advertising, events and media industries. The studio incorporates motion capture, motion tracking, virtual and augmented reality, 3D and LED solutions from brands such as Movella Entertainment/ Xsens, MANUS, Pixotope, Alfalite, NovaStar Technology and Epic Games/ Unreal Engine. Specifically, BDS installed an Alfalite VP XR Modularpix Pro 1.9 ORIM LEDWall, an Alfalite VP XR Modularpix Pro 3.9 HB LEDCeiling and an Alfalite VP XR Modularpix Pro 1.9 ORIM LEDTotem. Silvia C Natal, Alfalite’s international sales manager, said: “We are really proud that such a prestigious institution as the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Italy has trusted in our LED displays for their new virtual production studio together with the leading brands in the industry. We also thank our partner BDS for our successful partnership that allows us to bring our solutions to the Italian market.” Precisely, BDS has also installed in its showroom in Rome a studio equipped with Mo-Sys StarTracker, Alfalite LED, Pixotope and Xsens motion capture technology for demonstrations and training. BDS selected for its room an Alfalite Modularpix Pro 1.9 screen of 3.5 x 2.5m with ORIM VP XR technology. Sacha Biagio Virgilio, VP of BDS, says: “We are delighted to have integrated Alfalite’s LED technology at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia to boost training in the latest trends in virtual production. And as a company committed to excellence in VP XR technologies, we are proud of our collaboration with a leading brand like Alfalite that allows us to provide advanced solutions to the Italian market.” Italy’s Experimental Cinematography Centre adopts Alfalite LED screens NEWSKiosk and Digital Signage 7 Global interactive kiosks market to hit $33.99 billion by 2027 The global interactive kiosk market is forecast to reach $33.99 billion (£26.85 billion) by 2027, with a CAGR of 9.8% over the period, according to Fortune Business Insights. Increased demand for self-service solutions, applications in retail and healthcare and advances in touchscreen technology are forecast to be the main drivers of growth in the market, which was valued at £16.10 billion in 2019. Changing customer expectations on digital engagement are also key factors, with industries such as retail; banking, financial services and insurance; and entertainment, particularly driving demand for interactive screens. Interactive kiosks’ key benefit is offering an interactive environment for displaying information and facilitating actions for self-service, meaning they can be used for everything from making appointments to paying bills and recording tasks. As such, their adoption is only expected to increase amid further advances in technologies such as AI, near-field communication, radio- frequency identification and digital payment solutions. Cloud technology is a particular drive of market growth as it provides the data functionality required for analytics in a secure and reliable environment, at low cost. However, the report also warned that high maintenance and installation costs associated with kiosks could result in the slow adoption of the interactive devices. Saturn Visual Solutions, which works with clients such as ODEON, SEAT and AO, has launched an LED wall hire service. The Manchester- based company specialises in dvLED and has the ability to create bespoke bracketry giving it the ability to create unique displays and work around practical issues that other LED hire businesses might struggle with. Matthew Drury, sales and marketing director from Saturn, said: “We’ve seen a significant increase in interest in LED walls and believe that with our experience and capabilities, we can provide a unique service in the market.” He added, “We’ve already worked with one business to create bespoke bracketry and embed a dvLED into a pre-existing large, wooden exhibition stand.” Saturn Visual’s hire service covers LED walls of all sizes and includes a site visit, LED wall transportation, connection and set-up, take-down and removal. Unique dvLED hire service launched “We’ve already worked with one business to create bespoke bracketry and embed a dvLED into a pre-existing large, wooden exhibition stand”8 Kiosk and Digital Signage New partnership for programmatic sales in Portugal New partnership expands European footprint JCDecaux has teamed up with VIOOH to offer programmatic sales for digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising in Portugal. The outdoor advertising company’s programmatic digital out-of-home (prDOOH) inventory is now available to buy across 428 of JCDecaux Portugal digital screens – which includes roadside, airports and shopping malls and accounts for two-thirds of its inventory – via VIOOH Trading Manager. VIOOH is a premium global DOOH supply-side platform that connects to more than 40 leading global demand- side platforms, linking advertisers and media buyers to premium advertising inventory. Advertisers can also benefit from access to its Airport Audience Measurement, the first global industry standard offering standardised metrics of airport audience to make data-led buying decisions and optimise their campaign budgets across 36 of the world’s biggest airports including London Heathrow and Singapore. Programmatic purchasing is expected to revolutionise the Portuguese DOOH landscape by enabling advertisers to communicate more effectively and flexibly, thereby delivering more targeted and relevant messages to consumers. Leading the modernisation, implementation and optimisation of JCDecaux’s digital advertising operations in Portugal is Pedro Viegas as head of programmatic. Prior to joining the company’s Business & Product Development department in 2021, Viegas worked as an account director in media agencies Mindshare and Starcom. Philippe Infante, MD of JCDecaux Portugal, said: “Programmatic buying/selling will be a real turning point in outdoor advertising planning, enabling the sector to act with precision and agility, using audience segmentation through different types of data, and corresponding to specific objectives. “These new elements will provide greater flexibility in the purchase of space and will also provide opportunities to sell OOH to a new set of brands, particularly those with smaller budgets and digital natives.” Gavin Wilson, global chief customer and revenue officer at VIOOH said: “We’re proud to partner with JCDecaux to launch prDOOH offering in our twentieth market, across over 400 digital screens in Portugal. It’s a great moment for both local and global advertisers looking to tap into the unique, yet tried and tested benefits delivered by prDOOH. “Combining JCDecaux’s premium inventory with VIOOH’s programmatic capabilities will enable more advertisers operating locally in Portugal as well as global inbound demand to create highly targeted, flexible and measurable campaigns across the country.” Out-of-home (OOH) advertising platform Place Exchange has teamed up with OOH media company Clear Channel to expand in Europe. The partnership will enable direct programmatic buying of digital OOH (DOOH) inventory spanning the UK, Belgium, France, Finland, Norway, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and Sweden, through an integration with Clear Channel’s LaunchPAD platform. LaunchPAD offers programmatic, automated and direct buying channels through supply-side platform providers such as Place Exchange, and has the capacity to deliver more than 2 billion programmatic impressions monthly. By teaming up with Place Exchange, advertisers can seamlessly search for and buy almost 13,000 Clear Channel DOOH screens across multiple environments – including malls, roadside and transit – alongside programmatic channels such as connective television (CTV), digital and mobile, all within their preferred demand-side platforms. “We are thrilled to deepen our existing partnership with Clear Channel and further expand our programmatic offering in Europe, making buying programmatic DOOH an even more seamless experience for advertisers,” James Power, Commercial Director EMEA, Place Exchange, said. Meanwhile Dom Dunne, Programmatic Commercial Lead at Clear Channel Europe, said: “This partnership is just one example of our continued efforts to provide tremendous growth opportunities for programmatic DOOH across Europe as we seek to help advertisers connect with audiences in the heart of Europe’s largest markets.” The partnership comes as spending on DOOH advertising in Europe is forecast to rise by 7.27% a year from 2023 to 2027, according to Statista.Kiosk and Digital Signage 9 Harrods Tech Month sees stage interactive window experience Therabody has created a visually arresting interactive window experience as part of Harrods Tech Month, to drive awareness and trial. The concept was designed, produced and installed by Outform, who Therabody briefed to bring to life the innovation that lies at the heart of its market-defining offering. The result is an immersive, interactive experience that passers-by can control from their phone to discover more about Therabody’s wellness universe and product range. Therabody’s display takes up an entire window along Harrods’ iconic Brompton Road frontage. A QR- controlled interactive screen sits at its centre and a clever use of LED lighting ensures that it delivers a dramatic night-time impact. It showcases four hero Therabody products, including the brand’s newest entrant into the beauty tech space, it’s Theraface Mask, a super luxury at-home LED therapy mask that couples red and blue light with vibration therapy. Shoppers can choose one of three ‘stories’, in line with Therabody’s three product categories which trigger corresponding content on the large LED screen. As they watch the content, the relevant product categories light up in the window display - red for beauty, white for wellness, blue for performance - accompanied by a mobile landing page which links to the Harrods online store and a call to action to visit the brand concession on Harrods’ fifth floor and trial the product range. Simon Hathaway, Group MD EMEA at Outform, said: “Device-led wellness and beauty is an exciting space that’s enjoying phenomenal growth. Therabody is an ambitious brand looking to own this new category and we wanted to match the innovation that is a hallmark of their products by developing an equally innovative response to mark their partnership with Harrods. “We have a strong track record in delivering market-leading retail technology solutions that match the ambitions of category innovators like Therabody. Our experience and bespoke approach means we know how to cut through in a busy retail environment and showcase the unique essence of a disruptive brand to drive awareness and a competitive advantage.” John Solomon, CMO at Therabody, added: “Outform have worked with us to develop a brilliant talking moment for shoppers; something they can enjoy and engage with on their trip to Knightsbridge. Harrods Tech Month is an unmissable opportunity to harness the power of technology to create something out-of-the-ordinary; Outform has risen to the challenge and given us a powerful platform to bring the Therabody brand to life and communicate what makes us unique.”Next >