rVue Blog

ZeroTouch is the No Touchy Touchscreen

As we venture forward into advanced interactive technologies, where touchscreens are all the craze, we're now one step closer to touching nothing at all. A group of students over at Texas A&M have developed a "multi-touch no-touch, uh... touchscreen", where a grid comprised of a combination of LED lights and infrared sensors creates a digital web of sensors. This allows not only precise interaction, but it also reads varying degrees of pressure. So say if you're painting, you'll be able to get those variances of painterly strokes.

 

 

For germaphobes, this is a godsend, for everyone else, its another wall that's being broke down to make the interactive experience that much more immersing and entertaining. The opportunities for this kind of technology can be anywhere. Need to find your location at the airport, zoo or museum? How about checking in at the hospital? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue

  

 

Follow Up: Become the Content

As a follow-up to the previous blog I posted on the concept of the "every-day" consumer being able to upload/submit content through a motion capture device(in this case the XBOX360 Kinect), I found this video where a guy has hacked experimented with the Kinect and motion tracks his movements. Those movements are then transferred to a simple 2D version of himself. 

 

Though its very basic, the motion couldn't be more dead on. Why not harness this into an installation at a bus stop, mall or theme park? Would you agree this would be a magnet for curious minds and an outlet for direct consumer interaction? I think the potential is great here to really engage customers. Plus it reminded me of this...

 

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue

  

 

iPhone Geo-Tracking Debacle: Wherever you go, there you are.

Through this past month, Senator Al Franken has been face to face with Apple to come to the conclusion whether or not iPhone/iPad software is accurately pinpointing and storing your location.The reference to this piece of software is being known as the Locationgate. 

Personal privacy has always been a cornerstone of what makes our country great. Its kind of peculiar that when Bush indoctrinated the Patriot Act back in 2001, people were outraged, calling it a threat to our right as an American citizen - Privacy was threatened - Paranoia set in - Babies Cried. Three years later, Facebook was released and nearly 700 million(and this number probably has increased, I'm sure - but I'm not counting the users that will fall off the map) members around the world have willingly shared every single who-what-where-when detail about themselves. People have been more than fine with the fact that their entire lives now resides online. We did a 180 without even blinking.

 

“People have a right to know who is getting their information and a right to decide how that information is shared and used,” said Senator Franken.

“I still have serious doubts that those rights are being respected in law or in practice.”

What difference does this make that there's a technical bread crumb trail left on your phone? If you ever looked at the "Places" tab from your iPhone Photos app, you'll see every single picture you've taken geo-tagged on a Google map - so this is shouldn't be shocking news to learn that our digital Swiss-army knife IS as advanced and innovative as we've been boasting about.

That makes me wonder, well, IF PEOPLE CAN TRACK YOU, THEY'LL FIND YOU - THEN WHAT?! Well, scary loud font, if you're not breaking the law or running from it, you really don't have to worry, do you? When the Patriot Act came out, do you think they're tapping your phone so they can hear you talk for hours about how confused you were about the show Lost?

I mentioned to a fellow colleague, "Well if you're not doing anything illegal, you shouldn't have to worry, right?" He made a good point. "I know my intentions are good, but I don't know the intentions of those who can acquire this data."

I felt this was a legitimate point. This isn't just privacy for the sake of keeping a low profile, but for privacy that each one of us deserves. We certainly need to have a firm grip on technological advancements, considering they tend to evolve quicker than we can keep up. I'm glad people in higher chairs like Senator Franken are trying to steady the course ahead of time by addressing our privacy concerns towards larger communication and technology corporations. Yesterday Senator Al Franken requested from both Apple/Google that their apps distributed via their online marketplace to require "a clear, understandable privacy policy".

How do you feel about this? Do you think is a major breach in privacy or an opportunity to take this information and do some good? Could this help provide Census data for traveling trends? Will there ever be a balance? I would love to hear your feedback on this. Below is a an initial video(one of many) of Senator Al Franken grilling Apple/Google about the technology. 

 

 

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue

  

 

Industry Insights: Jennifer Bolt

Respected digital media leader Jennifer Bolt, SVP, Chief Strategy officer at rVue discusses the benefits of digital of home media, the importance of third Party Analytics and the exciting future of DOOH advertising.

 

 

I'll trade you my Kobe DOOH for your Griffin DOOH

 
Static trading cards are so 1990! Digital trading cards are the latest way digital out-of-home is making it's way in to our lives. Lakers star Kobe Bryant, Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers, John Wall of the Washington Wizards and Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder are the first stars to go "live" on trading cards. They will be followed up by hundred of other athletes who will go digital. Each card will pack an impressive 20 minutes of video career highlights. 

Created by display company Recom Group Inc. for Panini America Inc., cards will still hold some of the same feel as an old-school trading card since they will be mounted on cardboard, but that's about all that will resemeble the classics we grew up with. The new trading cards will be audio-enabled and be thicker than it's original counterpart. The cards will run you about $20 for 5 cards, which isn't as high as we first speculated.

I'm sure you can imagine how our minds started thinking when we first learned of these pocket-sized pieces of DOOH! The digital trading cards are just scratching the surface of what's capable for advertising on the go. For instance, sticking with the sports theme, Nike sponsors an athlete, so they issue "limited edition" cards with pre-roll advertisement playing before the actual video highlights start. And how long until these card will be Wi-Fi enabled? Or social media friendly? Collectors can particpate in virtual card trading, exchanging one piece of video for another (since that's the whole point of trading cards, right?). The possibitlies are endless with the amount of things you can do, the places you can take it or how it's shared when you shrink digital media down to a pocket-sized screen. 

And since we're such fans of sports here at rVue, we've created our own virtual trading card of famous (or infamous, depends) Nick Sears. You probably recognize him from our rVue Spotlight series; most recently sinking a half court shot from behind his back. (It's not altered... we promise!) So here's what we would put on our first ever rVue digital trading card:

   

Ashley DiVeronica - Digital Marketing - rVue

Save a tree with a Panda

As hard as we may try to recycle, lets face it, we just don't have that convenient blue bin at hand, at all times, to dump our trash in. We end up printing out copy after copy of paper without properly disposing them. Well, the ingenious people over at World Wildlife Foundation have taken the friendly "Please do not print" note a step further and developed a new green file format, dubbed WWF. Once you convert your PDF into this WWF format, it then restricts you from printing it out.  Word of this clever method is already spreading, gathering attention and popularity.

Do you think this will take off and make an impact or a fad that fizzles out? 

Click Here to get the WWF software now!

   

 

 

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

rVue Spotlight: Reach Sports Group

Here's our third installment of rVue Spotlight, where we feature The Herbert Wellness Center at the University of Miami, which hosts the Reach Sports Group Network. We'll continue to personally introduce you to digital out-of-home networks, the locations they're in, and helpful tips that improve campaign success. These videos can help any fresh face to the digital out-of-home industry or a seasoned vet trying to increase the value of their media plan.

Let us know what you think!

 

 

Catch up on our previous Spotlight videos!

 AMI JukeBox

Boldwater TV

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

Become the Content.

Over the past ten years, video games and digital advertising have become more like each other. Video games have real-world advertising and digital advertising has become more interactive and entertaining.

Being a part of a digital culture where the most popular websites include social networking/interaction; where 95% of its content is user generated, I wouldn't be surprised that this approach would continue to evolve even further. 

How further you wonder? 

The Xbox 360's newest best friend, The Kinect, is a motion-capture sensor that uses the players entire body as the controller for the game. You may have already heard about this new toy and its innovative technology, but what I want to focus/conceptualize on is this:

 

- If our actions are able to be mapped, captured and transferred into the games we play, then we should be able to export this data to an online server. These files then can then be used in ALL forms of media that associate with animated characters. For example, players can upload and win(through sweepstakes, contests, etc), then have their actions rigged into a character for a new video game.

 

(Above: How Kinect motion capture is achieved)

That sounds cool and you could probably expect a lot of Kinect owners to participate, but what if we went a step further and had this motion-capturing aesthetic installed in a window display in malls? Bus stops? Gyms? Times Square? Las Vegas? Tokyo?

Could the next big supplier of character content be directly from the consumer? Could digital signage locations around the world be the stage for complete consumer interaction? Would people get swept up in the new wave of socially-submitted interactive advertising? Is it already happening? Software will update, fads will come and go, but there is a solid argument that we are the integral piece to the most exciting and successful digital media out there.

  

(Above: This is an example of submitting user interactions by utilizing the Kinect)

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

Motion Poster Radar: Captain America: The First Avenger

With searching and uncovering new and exciting motion posters for new and upcoming films, I was a little surprised that there were none made for two of the biggest blockbusters this summer. Considering how clever Marvel Studio's execution towards releasing films(The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 1&2, Thor, Captain America) that all weave together and eventually meet in the 2012 release of The Avengers, I would have expected to see more motion posters to come out for Thor and Captain America to build even more excitement. 

When I first saw the Captain America poster, I pushed play in my head and saw it for how it should be - full of movement but yet delivered with an instilling emotion. After a few weeks expecting, "They have GOT to be making one", I was too excited to wait and went forward and made one myself. Here it is:

 

Does this make you more excited to see the Sentinel of Liberty fight the Third Reich? 

Is this more successful in catching attention and making an impression than its original still?

Do you think sales for red/white/blue frisbees will skyrocket this summer?

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

Tranformers 3 Mega-Banner at Cannes

 

At first I thought I was going to categorize this as a motion poster - HA!

This 'multimedia gate of awesomeness' that surrounds the entrance of the Palace Hotel in Cannes, France is as epic as the third (and final?) installment of the Transformers Trilogy. Flashing clips of the explosive action as well as highlighting the stars, both human and robotic; this constructed triptych is sure to get attention from Cannes Film attendees as well as the general public. It's hard to miss!

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

Motion Poster Radar: Iron Sky

 

Though it may not contend with summer blockbusters as Thor or Transformers 3, this independent sci-fi comedy is taking itself very seriously with this motion poster which they have released.

Towards the end of World War II, Nazi's made a breakthrough in anti-gravity, and put a space station on the dark side of the moon. An invasion 70 years in the making, the new wave of Nazi's come flying back to Earth. How this will turn into a comedy I have no idea, but they sure have my attention!

Here are other motion posters that have come up recently...

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

Coca-Cola turns Traffic Jam into Drive-Thru Theater

 

As a result of the high traffic in Bogota, Coca-Cola set up an big screen like an electronic billboard and played short independent films; and what's incredibly clever is that they transmitted the audio through the radio. Colorfully branded, smiling vendors would then go to each vehicle offering Coca-Cola as well as hot dogs, nachos or popcorn. That certainly would bring a smile to even the most white-knuckled, road-raged commuter. So please silence your phones and horns. 

If you have a captive audience, you have an opportunity to connect! Get out there and get inspired!

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

Meet the Creative Mind Who Will Take you to the Moon And Save You 15% on Your Car Insurance

 

Geico, BMW, Tabasco, Nationwide Insurance...the list of memorable and engaging advertising campaigns by Wade Alger goes on and on. Next month, spend an evening with one of the country's sharpest creative minds at the June 6th Advertising Federation event at Nova Southeastern University. Along with iCreatives, rVue is a proud sponsor of the event. To register or for more information on the event, visit the AdFed website at advertisingfederation.org.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

rVue Spotlight: AMI Jukebox

Here's our second installment of rVue Spotlight, where we feature JP Mulligans that hosts the AMI Jukebox Network. We'll continue to personally introduce you to digital out-of-home networks, the locations they're in, and helpful tips that improve campaign success. These videos can help any fresh face to the digital out-of-home industry or a seasoned vet trying to increase the value of their media plan.

Let us know what you think!

 

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

Forever 21 Leading the Runway in Holographic Fashion Shows

What does a tech-savvy guy like Steve Jobs have in common with runway model Heidi Klum? Easy. They are both icons in industries that experience constant change; industries where one must remain two steps ahead of the game just to attract the smallest amount of attention: technology and fashion.

Leading fashion retailer, Forever 21, has creatively merged the two industries together to present consumers with a fashion first - digital runway shows. The retailer made jaws drop in Vienna, Austria on Monday as they executed the first of eight holographic fashion shows around the world. With the production help of space150, the show gave invitees the chance to see the latest fashion trends in a runway show comprised entirely of holographic models.

That’s right. Holographic. It’s more than just images on a screen, though. It’s 3-D models walking an invisible staircase and disappearing into starbursts. Have a look at the fashion-forward 3-D show for yourself:

 Video clip of Fashion Show:  

This isn’t the first digital venture for this Los Angeles- based fashion emporium. Last year, Forever 21 introduced an interactive digital billboard in Times Square, where giant models interacted, in real time, with customers on the streets outside the store. Models snapped polaroids of the crowd, or picked people up, and dropped them into a store shopping bag.

 Video clip of digital billboard:  

So does this mean that Heidi Klum is out of a job and needs to turn to the Steve Jobs' of the world for financial support? Probably not. But it certainly introduces an interesting approach to the fashion industry and puts a new spin on digital branding.

Monthly Trends: April 2011

From demographics, to venues and markets, we track these popular industry trends within the rVue demand-side platform and will continue to bring this information to you every month. If you're curious to see these numbers evolve more often, the are available exclusively on the rVue dashboard - so be sure to log onto rVue.com now!

 

 

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

rVue Spotlight: Boldwater TV

Here at rVue, we find a certain kind of joy in directly connecting agencies and networks together, to build harmonious and successful campaigns. We thrive on providing you live data, an easy work-flow and support to help you with anything along the way.

And, we feel like giving you more.

We are now going to release weekly video blogs called, rVue Spotlight, where we personally introduce you to digital out-of-home networks, the locations they're in, and helpful tips that improve campaign success. These videos can help any fresh face to the digital out-of-home industry or a seasoned vet trying to increase the value of their media plan.

We've integrated Google Street-View into the rVue platform to show you the surrounding area of a network and we felt these network highlights would be a great addition to further show the different types of network locations available.

Our first segment features the Bimini Boatyard Restaurant & Bar in sunny Fort Lauderdale, Florida, which hosts the BoldwaterTV Network.

Let us know what you think!

 

 

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

Motion Poster Radar: Billy Elliot

Well it may not be as raw and bloody as a the Conan the Barbarian motion poster(which is probably a good thing), but to promote the the broadway production of Billy Elliot, there's a new motion poster out for all to see. Its clean and simple, but fun and energetic at the same time. Since the movie identity is known for it's main character jumping in mid-air, the creators cleverly harnessed the bullet-cam effect(No Billy's were harmed) and produced quite an immersing moment that freezes in time and makes for an impressive poster that demands attention. 

 

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
  

Digital Cola Wars? Pepsi, Coke and their Refreshing Approaches to Interactive DOOH

Last year, Coca-Cola launched a fun viral video that portrayed a ficticious vending machine that turned out free Cokes and pizzas. Now, with their own refreshing twist, Pepsi has introduced a a very real vending machine that is social media-enable and touted as the "Next Generation in Interactive Vend Technology."

Just announced at a Chicago trade show, PepsiCo's Social Vending Machine reinforces their commitment to developing "Smart" Equipment. This generation vending machine let's the users buy a soda, gift a soda to a friend or to a stranger. The purchaser selects a drink, enter's the recipient's name, cell phone number and a personalized text message with a code redeemable at another vending machine. Consumers can even send a personal message with a short video recorded by the machine.

 

According to Pepsi, this effort extends social interaction with their social networks and comsumers beyond the static, into something fun. What is next for Coke? Touchscreen Interactive vending machines that enhance the user experience.

 

 

Billboards & Signage Go Green

As we just celebrated Earth Day last week, there is no better time to share some out-of-home, green advertising with you.

Our citrusy friends at Tropicana used 2,500 oranges to light up a billboard in France. How so? Well, the oranges were fitted with zinc and copper spikes which simply caused the orange juice to dissolve the metals, "causing their electrons to create a current."

According to DDB Paris, Tropicana will be bringing more orange-powered billboards to the streets next month. Stay tuned!

 

In another clever and eco-friendly ad campaign, Fresh Green Ads, the self-proclaimed "innovative green media agency", has launched the RAINCAMPAIGN for SEA LIFE Scheveningen, in the Netherlands. "Every time it rains the octopus of SEA LIFE Scheveningen appears on streets and cisterns with its tentacles holding the text: SEA LIFE never lets you go." Have a look at the rain-appearing ads in action.

 

Vimeo Shows Up to the iPhone Party

 

Video-posting hub Vimeo has released their new application for the iPhone. This may not sound like a wild newsline but for the media culture that resides on Vimeo, it is. Though not as familiar as its more popular cousin, YouTube, Vimeo's quality of content from its users is as clean and 'pro' looking as the site itself. I won't focus so much on which is better since both have pros and cons, which make each site's role significant and appreciated, but the principle of quality over quantity chimes louder than you can ignore when comparing the two. 

Now that I got that out of the way, lets get to the app.

As you'd expect, you can search, play, and upload clips to the site; but it also gives you the ability to import video/audio stored on your phone, edit them together on a timeline, and even stylize them with filters, transitions and titles. There is even an option to download audio tracks provided by Vimeo (Wifi/iTunes required). The title design feature certainly is not like having a copy of After Effects on your phone, but it works. (Plus if you're taking the editing/title process seriously, you shouldn't be doing it on your phone; am I right?)

Since I'm covering the features of this app and practically reviewing it, I figured I'd take a test run. After learning for myself (as well as a few instructional cues), I put a short clip together using videos I've taken on my own adventures. 

 

The final product is nothing amazing, but for experimenting purposes, it works! With all the tapping, swiping and pinching, I'd say the learning curve is about 20 minutes. As any newly released app that deals with a lot of complexity you may encounter a crash here and there, but regardless, this is a fun app to put clips together quickly and directly upload to Vimeo. 

Now since you've been such a great audience and read this whole blog post, you're probably wondering, "What the heck does this have to do with digital signage?"

Well, with how integrated mobile interaction has been with digital signage in places like malls, bars and concerts (to name a few), the popularity of posting comments and pictures is ultimately going to evolve to posting videos to these networks. From the teenager at the pop concert showing her point-of-view in front of the stage, to the biker showing off tricks on his new ride, people love to share their videos - and that's clearly evident with sites like Vimeo and YouTube. 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
 

Japan Earthquake & Tsunami Disaster Relief

rVue has released :30 and :15 second high-definition spots in support of the Red Cross and it's Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami relief efforts. The videos are designed to promote donations to disaster relief efforts  to help those affected by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific. Text the word “redcross” to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Your monthly cell phone bill will be charged with the money donated to support the tsunami and earthquake relief.

rVue has made these high definition video available to ALL DOOH networks at no cost in multiple formats. To access the video for your network, please contact us at connect@rvue.com or download:

Motion Poster Radar: CONAN

As I posted last month about the success of motion poster installations in movie theaters, I recently came across another newly released poster that I thought deserved merit.

CONAN THE BARBARIAN returns to theaters this summer as a fresh reboot shown in 3D. Now, as you may remember from my previous blog(if you missed it, click here), the featured motion poster was for the DRIVE ANGRY movie, starring Nicholas Cage. That poster contained everything you'd expect from a high-octance action movie - explosions, fast camera angles, gunplay, gristled heros and the blond bombshells that adore them. For Conan however, it's a minimal moving shot of our anti-hero standing on what seems to be a very large pile of skulls. 

I thought to myself, well, both posters work so well and yet are still so different - what common ground do they share? These posters have multiple elements working for them, but the most effective is the ability to engage and communicate to the audience. Going guns blazing will always catch attention, but the strongest asset the CONAN poster has is communication. We all are familiar with Arnold's role as the barbarian, but the eery music and apolyptic rolling clouds tells you something more. It's as if it warns us, as if its a subtle disclaimer to prepare the audience what they're in for. 

No doubt, if I saw a still poster of this, I'd be intrigued with a solid "Ohhh, no wayyyy" kind of a response. However, this motion poster succeeds so much more that it figuratively tightens that screw toward my decision to purchase that ticket. What feelings do you get from watching this? Creeped out? Excited?

Two things are for sure.

A lot of heads will roll in this movie, and with this motion poster.. a lot of heads will turn.

 

Blogged by Nick Sears - Motion Designer - rVue
 

Jason Kates on Cohen On Content at DSE 2011

Phil Cohen of Cohen on Content interviewed rVue's very own Jason Kates at DSE 2011 in Las Vegas last week. Check out the interview where Cohen and Kates discuss the Expo and upcoming trends in the industry.

  

David Matera, CEO & Co-Founder of OOH Pitch, Inc.

 

rVue's Industry Insights talks with David Matera, CEO & Co-Founder of OOH Pitch. In this segment, David talks about the advantages of targeting, planning and buying Digital Out-of-Home media.

Fun Friday: Meet Intern Meredith McGowan

Fun Friday: Meet Designer Nick Sears