2. Where is Digital Signage?
• You’ve seen a digital sign everywhere
you can imagine – retail stores, malls,
banks, billboards, airports, elevators,
trains, churches, cafeterias, etc...
• And maybe some places you haven’t
imagined…
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
3. What is Digital Signage?
Digital Signage is a network of one or more digital screens
used to deliver the right information to
the right audience at the right time
• Three Basic Types of Digital Signage Networks
• Out of Home Advertising – designed for sales lift
– Advertising, promotions, new products, branding
• Point of Information – designed to educate and inform
– Flights, news & weather, menu boards, schedules, events, locations,
directions, etc…
• Office Applications – designed to educate, motivate and inform
– Employee bulletins, welcome messages, training material, meeting
room schedules, call center data, etc…
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
4. What kinds of signs are there?
• Digital signs can take many forms, including free-standing towers, flat
screens hung from walls and ceilings, electronic displays integrated
into end caps at retail stores, video walls in all sorts of venues and
even 30 foot outdoor billboards.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
5. What are they used for?
• Visitor wayfinding
• Information sharing
– Meeting announcements
– Community bulletin boards
– Public health care information
• Product information / education
• Product / service announcements
• Departure / arrival information
• Advertising
• Improving in-location experience
• Training for staff
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
6. What kind of customers are
using digital signs?
• Hospitality and restaurant facilities
• Retail stores and malls
• Cinemas & theaters
• Hospitals and medical offices
• Corporate headquarters and remote offices
• Cable & community TV stations
• Educational institutions
• Government offices
• Financial institutions and banking industry branches
• Manufacturing plants
• Gas stations
• Houses of worship
• Airports, bus & railway stations
• Planes, trains, buses & elevators
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
7. How do they work?
• Digital signage networks let the network owner or manager
remotely control where, when and how content will appear
on each screen.
• Take a look at the next screen to understand the pieces of
the puzzle and the work flow...
• We will then talk about all of the components
– What they do and who has partnered with Minicom to
help you with building your network…
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
8. Components of a
Digital Signage Network
“The Last Mile”
Content
www.minicom.com
Distribution (Narrowcasting) Display
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
9. What does a network look like?
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
10. Content Creation
• As the saying goes - CONTENT IS KING. If the content is engaging, then
the audience will be more open to your message.
• Whatever your message, creating your content and keeping it fresh will
consume a great deal of your digital signage budget and time.
• To get there you need to think long and hard about your content:
– Who is going to create it – what is it intended to do?
– How often will you refresh it?
• This is the content creation portion of our digital signage puzzle
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
11. Managing the Content
• Once you have created your content, managing it and
getting it to the right place at the right time becomes
critical to the success of your digital signage network.
• Our content management software (CMS) partners
provide solutions that fit many different needs.
• This is the content management portion of our digital
signage puzzle.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
12. Content Management Partners
• Our partners can help you decide the best software to meet your
current and future needs.
• Not every software package will meet every need you may have…
• CMS companies have different ways of letting you access and
schedule your content. You need to make sure their model fits your
organization and budget.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
13. Content Players / Servers
• The platform on which your content is played is an important
consideration when designing your Digital Signage network. To some
extent the CMS you choose will help determine the players or servers
you can use. Some software comes embedded on proprietary
players. Other software can be run on all PCs, but require certain
specifications to optimize performance.
• This is the player/server portion of our digital signage puzzle.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
14. Distribution Services
• One challenge in creating your network is getting your content from
where it was created or managed to where it is going to be played.
Methods of distribution include all forms of network connectivity
including: satellite, DSL, VPN, WAN, LAN or maybe an old fashioned
sneaker net in the form of DVD’s, CD Rom or USB sticks.
• You also need to get your content from your player or video server to
the screen, within your final location. This could be as close as a few
feet or as far as a few miles and each needs a unique solution.
• This is the distribution services portion of our digital signage puzzle.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
15. Display Solutions
• Are you using LCD’s or Plasma? Will a projector work better for
you? How big does the screen need to be? Is it professional rather
than consumer grade? Do you need HD? This is the most visible
aspect of your Digital Signage network and probably second in
importance to your content and its management.
• Screen placement is an essential element to the success of your
messages getting to your audience. Placement leads to the next
piece of the puzzle – Mounting Solutions.
• These are our display partners:
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
16. Mounting Solutions
• Hang them from the ceiling? Mount them on the wall? Don’t
overlook this very important piece of your digital signage
puzzle. Where you put your screens makes a big difference in how
they will be effective or non-disruptive to your core business. There
is also a cost associated with your decision.
• This is the mounting solution portion of our digital signage puzzle.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
17. Full Service Integrators
& Distributors
• Do you know what you want? Do you need help getting all of the
pieces together? Are you looking for someone who can assist you
in all aspects of your Digital Signage network deployment?
• Are you an integrator or VAR and looking for a reputable place to
purchase your equipment?
• This is the full service integrator and distributor portion of our digital
signage puzzle.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
18. Deployment Services
• Do you need help with a nationwide or international roll out to your
customer’s locations? This is where the Minicom Advanced Systems
Partner Program can be of great value to you. By enabling access to
our partners that have passed our high standards of professionalism
you are assured a quality service provider.
• This is the deployment services piece of our digital signage puzzle.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
19. Why use digital signs?
• Location specific
– You can place appropriate content exactly where you want the
messages to be received (i.e. deli counter, pharmacy, end caps,
front desk, etc.)
• Day specific
– You can change the content during the day, during a week, during
the time of year to reflect current activities, special promotions,
new clientele, etc.
• They can be updated remotely
– No need to ship new materials and wait for them to be displayed
– You can change content on the fly: if you’re not getting the results
you want, if you have a new product line, etc.
• You know they are being seen
– You receive electronic feedback from players and screens, so you
are sure your messages are being played and seen
• Content is dynamic…
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
20. Some Considerations
• Cost – there is an investment involved
– Avoid big problems by testing everything
– Run a small pilot
– Use lease options and other creative financing
• Complexity - Digital signage projects require technical business,
marketing and design expertise
– Make sure your team includes all interested parties
– Make sure you understand the purpose of the network and the benefit
to all interested parties – before you begin
• Return on Investment
– Is it $$$
– Is it something else – creativity, ingenuity, results?
– Clearly define your objectives – monitor your progress frequently
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
21. The Minicom Advantage
• 20 years of experience
• Over 200,000 screens worldwide use Minicom technology
• Effective innovation & high R&D investment
• Flexible and versatile digital signage solutions
• High value price-performance ratio
– Minimizes original capital investment – less CPUs, less player licenses
– Minimizes cost of ownership – service and support
• Partner-friendly corporate ethos
• Out-of-band systems
– Frees network from heavy
image transfers
• CAT5 technology
– Improved cable management
• 3-year warranty
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
22. Minicom Information
Company Background Minicom Contacts
• Established in 1988 David Haar - Vice President
• Privately owned – Intel Capital
minority share in the company (2006) Digital Signage Division
• Over 150 employees 888-486-2154 Ext 14
• Headquarters in Israel dave.haar@minicom.com
• Regional HQ North America & Europe Rami Sasson – Vice President of Sales
• Minicom operates worldwide in over 888-486-2154 Ext 11
50 countries
rami.sasson@minicom.com
• Technical expertise in CAT5 signal
distribution Ivo Petrov - Director of Technical Support
• Pioneered the Computer Based 888-486-2154 Ext 12
Training market ivo.petrov@minicom.com
• Started the CAT5 revolution in the Sherylle Clark – Logistics Manager
KVM server management market
888-486-2154 Ext 32
• Today, Minicom leads the Digital
Signage distribution market sherylle.clark@minicom.com
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
23. Sources of Information
• POPAI
–http://www.popai.com/Content/NavigationMenu2/Membership/DigitalSignageGroup/
default.htm
• The Digital Signage Directory
–www.digitalsignagedirectory.com
• Digital Signage Forum
–http://www.digitalsignageforum.com/
• Digital Signage Expo
–http://www.digitalsignageexpo.net/
• The Digital Signage Show
–http://www.thedigitalsignageshow.com/default.asp
• The Strategy Institute
–http://www.strategyinstitute.com/dsp_conferences.php
• Professional AV Buyers Guide
–http://www.professionalavbuyersguide.com
• Digital Signage Universe
–http://www.digitalsignageuniverse.com/index.html
• National Retail Foundation
–http://www.stores.org/ribg/
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
24. Blogs
• Minicom Digital Signage Blog:
http://minicom.blogspot.com
• POPAI Digital Signage Blog:
http://www.popaidigitalblog.com/blog
• Digital Signage Universe Forum
http://digitalsignageuniverse.net/
• WireSpring Blog
http://www.wirespring.com/weblog/index.cgi
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
26. Upcoming Events
• NEC Summit
– August 26 & 27
• Scala Connected Signage Conference
– September 14th – 16th
• Digital Signage Expo East
– September 17th & 18th
– See us at the Broadsign, Exhibio, Scala &
Rhombus Systems booths
• On-going Webinar Series
– www.minicom.com/av-webinars.htm
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
28. More Partners & Customers
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
29. Some Acknowledgements
• This presentation contains materials that we have
collected from a number of sources and individuals
throughout the Digital Signage Industry.
• Minicom would like to personally thank the following for
their various contributions:
– Dale Smith, Director of Business Development, Peerless Industries
– Bill Gerba, CEO, Wirespring Technologies
– Laura Davis-Taylor, Carre Dawson and Bert Cotter from POPAI
• All Logos and industry marks are the property of their
respective owners
• There is a book – it takes a village – in digital signage – it
takes partnerships – thank you all.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
30. Questions?
Thank you for your time…
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
31. Screen Placement
• According to Dale Smith of Peerless
Industries, “All the well intentioned design
work, beautiful display devices and high
powered content that money can buy are
rendered ineffective if placed in a poor
location.”
• The screens must be located in a public
area
• The screens must be clearly visible
• Viewing distance needs to be optimized so
that the screen will not appear too big or
too small.
• Only if you successfully meet all these
placement challenges will your digital
signage system allow optimal screen
spotting and provide maximum results.
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
32. DS Vision® 3000
• A long range (2000ft/600m) point-to-multi-point
system for transmission of high definition video
and stereo-audio content from any player to
multiple screens in real-time.
• Up to 1080i / 1080p a@ 60 Hz
• Full duplex RS232 control and query of screens in
one-to-one & one-to-many environment
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
33. DS Vision® 3000 Components
• Transmitter 1 port
• Broadcaster 8 port
• Broadcaster 16 port
– Transmits video, stereo-audio and RS-232 data
– Controls video and stereo-audio output, either as a group or for individual screens
– Local video, stereo-audio & serial output
• Line Splitter (100m/360ft) – additional 8 Ports
• Line Splitter Long (300m/1000ft) – additional 8 Ports
– For duplication of your content to multiple screens
– For long distance clustering (using regular receiver)
– Long version enables video tuning
• Receiver (100m/360ft)
• Receiver Long (300m/1000ft)
• Receiver Dual (double output, cascade)
– Receiver Long has skew compensation and video equalizer
• Video Tuning Unit
– Palm-held remote device for simple and convenient screen-tuning
www.minicom.com
Connecting your players to screens – experts in the “Last Mile™” of digital signage networks
