Covid -19 and Digital signage Keep your distance


Diary and column


Designed for 24/7 use, full remote management control (using Philips PDS’s exclusive CMND platform), and capable of delivering complex content to capture any audience's at- tention,


the D-Line displays


were strategically positioned in portrait mode at the entrance of ‘Apteekkari Sky’ rooftop terrace and inside the rooftop’s indoor bar area.


Connected to strategically placed


Bosch cameras, the


number of people entering and exiting the terrace is calculat- ed and displayed in real-time, with a traffic light system dis- played to indicate when it’s safe for people to enter as and when capacity is reached and reduced. The displays are also used to communicate market- ing messages and promotions to customers, whether waiting or not – ensuring investments are maximised and future-proofed.


an increasingly important way of life for people and business- es during the current climate, again Philips Professional Dis- play Solutions has announced the creation of a series of brand-new queue management solution. Designed exclusively to help public settings across EMEA, including retail stores, supermarkets, cinemas and many more, to monitor and manage footfall for the safety of both customers and staff, these are already being trialled with Philips PDS customers in countries across Europe. With health officials recom- mending social distancing of at least 2 metres, business- es – particularly those with a high footfall – are being urged to implement strict measures around capacity and crowding to help reduce the spread of the coronavirus. Before a crowd even starts to develop around a sign or shop floor feature? As part of its commitment to supporting cus-


Display Solutions, commented: “We’re living in unprecedent- ed times and our health and safety, whether we’re isolating at home, working, or visiting a store, is of paramount impor- tance. Something as simple as visiting a supermarket or enter- ing a leisure setting may now require a new level of thought, from queuing up outside to fol- lowing marked-out routes.” He continued:


“It can be


confusing and intimidating for some – communication is vital. Technology can play a huge role in ensuring the current rules and guidelines are maintained and that customers and staff feel confident, safe and well informed at all times as they make moves back into a new normal.”


Unlimited oppotunities


The new, complete queue man- agement solutions from Philips PDS and its solutions partners provides


a wide and varied Jari Pöykiö, sales manager


at Avek, commented: “Finnish regulations for restaurants are very tough during normal times. But these are not normal times. Keeping people safe and social- ly distanced to help reduce the potential spread of a new and invisible enemy (COVID-19) is a major consideration for many industries and present some major challenges. That’s where technology can play a vital role and that’s why we again turned to Philips Professional Display Solutions.”


Arto Hujanen, restaurants manager added: “The safety of our customers and staff is our number one priority and, with PeopleCount, we now have a solution that brings a new level of safety, as well as trust, as we continue to move forward in a post COVID world. "We’re delighted with the re- sponse from our staff and the reaction from our customers has been extremely positive. The solution has already proved to be a very worthwhile invest- ment, minimizing any potential disruptions to their experience, and allowing people to stay informed while enjoying them- selves.”


Social distancing As social distancing becomes


tomers with timely end-to-end solutions that can be seam- lessly implemented, Philips Professional Display Solutions has brought the strength of its strategic partnerships with global software and peripher- als providers together with the power of its Android displays, to deliver a series of new easy- to-install and cost effective dig- ital signage solutions.


Queue management


Designed to fit settings with one or several points of entry, the Philips’ solutions will pro- vide visibility on the number of people entering and exiting a building, as well as introducing effective and efficient queue management systems, inform- ing and engaging customers at the same time. Kersten Retail Techniek, one of the largest retail installers in the Benelux region – support- ing some of the world’s leading brands,


including H&M, Pri-


mark, Footlocker, Douglas, the Sting and van Haren (Deich- mann) – is already in the pro- cess of introducing the solution across stores, while conversa- tions with a number of leading organisations are taking place in the UK and Europe. Roeland Scholten, IKAM EMEA at Philips Professional


P10 AV News June 2020 P16 AV News July 2020 P12 AV News November 2019


choice of options and opportu- nities for companies, whether in retail, corporate, hospitality, education, healthcare or any other. These benefits are rel- evant both for today’s current climate and for the future. Installed at the building en- trance(s), Philips displays can be programmed to provide customers and staff with clear information around capacity, alerting them whether it’s safe or not safe to enter. In addition, information can be broadcast via audio and even a traffic light system (red, amber and green), ensuring complete inclusivity. Information is automatically calculated using accurate smart people counting cameras posi- tioned at any entrances, as well as the option to supplement these around other parts of the building. This can be used to feed information on expected wait times, as well as engaging, promotional messaging, onto additional displays positioned in shop windows along any queue systems. The solutions can even be in- tegrated into a venue’s automat- ic doors, opening and closing based on capacity – potentially freeing up staff from managing lines. Philips Professional Dis- play Solutions’ exclusive con- trol and management software, CMND, allows for


single and


multiple displays to easily cre- ate and share information, pro- viding complete control locally and remotely.


Hands-off the equipment


Sky News’ correspondent Tom Acres recently reported that sci- entists have been studying the transmission of flu for years, including going into homes and schools, swabbing remote con- trols, doorknobs and other hard objects to examine how the ill- ness sustains itself. It tends to survive best on hard metal and plastic surfaces, and COVID-19 be similar with es- calator handrails, self-service checkouts, door handles, touch screens at fast food restaurants and cinemas and vending ma- chines all subject to


testing. So how infectious are these


surfaces? Apparently, it can depend on the nature of the surface, the temperature, the humidity. It could be hours, certainly enough time for peo- ple to touch it and potential- ly become infected. So, in a high-traffic area, the potential risk might well be considered unacceptable.


Enter BrightLink and Bright- Menu are two solutions that help retailers, restaurants and other businesses operate safe- ly in the face of new health regulations brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.


BrightLink is a new touchless solution that eliminates the need to physically engage with touch-interactive


digital sig-


nage. By simply scanning a QR code, customers transfer con- trol of the experience to their phones to browse or interact with content as they normally would, eliminating the need for physical contact. Bright- Menu uses very similar Bright- Sign technology but delivers a one-way


experience whereby


patrons scan a QR code and receive the restaurant’s menu on their mobile device – no internet connection, no app to download and no printed menus. “Safely resuming operations requires businesses to reimag- ine the experience they offer customers, particularly as it relates to any sort of physi- cal engagement,” said Ann Holland, VP of Marketing at BrightSign. “We all want to get back to work, and at Bright- Sign we especially want to help our partners – retail, higher ed, corporate, hospitality and more – open up for business in as safe a way as possible.”


Touchless interaction


The BrightLink solution ad- dresses many of the sectors hardest hit by COVID-19 – re- tailers in particular, but also higher education, museums, amusement parks and other settings where touchscreens were previously in use. As a phased re-opening


of the


economy takes shape, cus- tomers will bring a heightened awareness of safe hygiene, gravitating to proprietors that take steps to curtail pathogen spread in their places of busi- ness.


“COVID-19 gave us pause to


think creatively about how our platform and our core technol- ogies can be applied to help businesses operate under to- day’s very unique circumstanc- es,” said BrightSign CEO Jeff Hastings. “Allowing customers to browse and control content via their phones is a natural way of empowering them to en- rich their shopping and leisure experiences, while slowing vi- rus spread by eliminating con- tact with high-touch surfaces.” In recent years, many retail- ers have invested heavily in in- teractive signage that custom- ers will now be very reluctant to touch. BrightLink enables customers to scan a QR code and remotely control the dis- play via their mobile phones.


The custom interface lets cus- tomers access detailed product information, discount coupons, wayfinders and even interac- tive product demonstrations – no app or internet connection required. And once a customer connects with the display, the retailer can then invite them to opt-in to the store’s loyalty pro- gram, or even complete a sale via the retailer’s mobile e-com- merce platform.


Restaurants face their own unique set of challenges as they resume dine-in opera- tions. With communal menu usage now discouraged or prohibited, proprietors seek alternatives to reduce the cost and waste of single use print- ed menus. BrightMenu makes it possible for customers to scan a QR code with their mobile phone and browse the full menu. Additionally, restau- ranteurs can promote daily specials and invite patrons to join the restaurant’s frequent diner program, all from within the menu interface on the cus- tomer’s phone. This complete, affordable menu solution does not require an internet connec- tion, a digital display or even an existing website menu. This review has described


a handful of solutions for the Covid-19 crisis, and there are certainly more to cove as the industry demonstrates its agility in response to extreme circumstances. As Mikael da Fonseca, Sales Director at


Restaurants face their own unique set of challenges as they resume dine-in operations. With communal menu usage now discouraged or prohibited, proprietors seek alternatives to reduce the cost and waste of single use printed menus. BrightMenu makes it possible for cus- tomers to scan a QR code with their mobile phone.


Philips Professional Display Solutions said: “At Philips Pro- fessional Display Solutions, we pride ourselves in and feel a great responsibility for bring- ing new products and solutions to market to meet the needs of our customers. In this extreme instance, we were able to fore- see and respond immediately to the conditions caused by COVID-19, and respond to their very sudden changing needs to create a solution that, in Janu- ary this year, did not appear on any roadmap.”


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