Digital signage can be described as a sub-segment of signage. All digital signs utilize technologies like projection, LED and LCD to display content like information, streaming media, video and digital images. Digital signages can be easily found in corporate buildings, restaurants, hotels, retail stores, stadiums, museums, transportation systems and public spaces. They are designed for outdoor advertising, marketing, exhibitions and wayfinding. Therefore, digital signage comprises of any size screen that displays any kind of content for a particular reason. The description might be wide but it should not be confusing.

There are certain categories of deployment, these ranges from simple ones to those that are complex. Some of them include the following:

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•Videowall in a major retailer.

•Wayfinding screens in a mall.

•Public facing boards in a corporation.

•Menu boards.

•Single screen. Automated content like FIDS, weather, sports, news etc.

Software

Digital signage is undoubtedly a fragmented industry because many vendors compete to sell their solution to consumers. However, it is very difficult to set vendors apart unless you completely understand details of the type of technology that is being used.

Any given software solution has 4 primary components:

i.Content creation software.

ii.Device management software.

iii.Content management/distribution software.

iv.Software that resides in a media player.

Markets

As earlier mentioned, most of the digital signage solutions use LCD displays when showing content such as streaming media, videos and images. Currently, digital signage is available in an array of environments. It is almost everywhere e.g. hotels, corporate buildings, restaurants, stores, transportation systems, stadiums, museums etc.

Content

There are two kinds of content that can be show by digital signage solutions i.e. interactive content and static content.

Static content is that which is set beforehand by the owner of the system. On the other hand, interactive content engages with users in real time. Some common interactive technologies are image capture devices, movement detectors and touch screens.

Distribution

Hardware is the main content distributor if digital signage Typical installations comprise of three components i.e. content management server, media players and LCD display. The media player connects to the content management server via a network. However, multiple media players can be supported by a single content management server.

There are even digital signage devices that are stand alone. This means that all these functions are combined in just one device without the need for a network connection. The operating systems that can support digital signages solutions are Apple’s IOS, Android, Linux and Windows.

Digital media players

All digital signages must utilize at least 1 media player when sending digital content. Usually, this is a tiny computer unit that has been designed specifically for the purpose of digital signage solutions.

There is a myriad of software and hardware solutions to select from, each of which offers the consumer a different way of scheduling the content and back playing it.

Conclusion

The above insightful information explains what digital signage is in depth, the different types, how it is distributed etc. Advancement in softwares has made it possible for people to automatically make content in real time. This is based upon real time data like schedules, prices, weather, stock market and news.