‘Content is central to DOOH digital solutions’

Could you tell us how data analyticsbecame a part of your solutions to clients in the DOOH space?

DOOH has undergone multiple changes in its business dynamics in the last three years, bringing about an increasing focus on data analytics. This demand was seen to come from both the media owners and advertising brands. To cater to this demand, we needed to design solutions accordingly.

Could you explain how the new market trends shaped your own approach to developing go-to-market solutions?

The demand for digital OOH displays is on the rise over the last three years, we at Panasonic saw this coming. Certainly nobody anticipated a pandemic at the time but the offerings of Panasonic today have been designed from that vision three years back. Panasonic was primarily a hardware organisation and gradually we figured out that content is the important factor in display solutions and if we don’t immerse ourselves in that space we may not stay relevant in the time to come. Hence, we created the SignEdgeDisplay Network (SDN) as an addition to our hardware solution and today with the integration of SDN and data analytics into our hardware, we are in a unique position in the DOOH market by offering end-to-end solution to our customers.

In your observation what exactly do brands expect from their DOOH campaigns?

It has all become more data driven. Brands want to know what returns they can expect out of DOOH. They want to make real-time changes based on such data; not only for their advertising content, but also to their products.

With the analytics in picture, brands look to streamline their ad campaigns and the real-time bidding (RTB) is a fitting aspect to bolster them.

Can you tell us more about Panasonic’s hardware capabilities that are suitable for RTB?

We have designed panels that can work on open OS like Windows and Android and are integrated with the digital signage software that enables RTB. From the hardware perspective, this technology is in-built into all the panels across the full range of Panasonic’s display solutions.

Going further post pandemic, what kind of trends do you expect in the DOOH space ?

The new phase of DOOH will see a somewhat conservative approach from brands and investors, which would mean that innovative technologies like AR and VR are not a likely appearance on DOOH in India. It takes about US$1000 to produce a less-than-30 second content for AR technology. India may not be ready to see it in mainstream OOH just yet. And post pandemic, people will be conservative in their approach towards outdoor advertising.

But the conservative approach has also given widespread acceptance to touch interface due to the cost effective technology and its wide ranging utility. Similarly, face analytics system to determine emotions of customers will gain trust. Brands want to administer the audience’s perspective towards their brands. So in a larger sense, technologies that are not prohibitively expensive and offer an extensive use case will have a greater acceptance.