Digital signage offers hoteliers and other in the hospitality area with an effective approach to communications and advertising.

Digital signage is making itself felt in a variety of vertical niches, like retail stores, higher education and medical facilities, but no where is it finding greater acceptance as an attractive alternative to printed signs than at hotels, resorts, convention centers and other businesses falling under the heading of "hospitality industry."

The reason is simple: These sorts of businesses have a great need to convey information that changes daily -or even hourly- to the general public. Digital signage is an appealing solution because it allows the content of a sign to be updated quickly and at little expense. With the right software and network architecture, it's even possible to tap into existing property management software systems to extract event and scheduling information so signs remain fresh with minimal human intervention.

An added benefit of digital signs for hoteliers and others is they can be used to promote the facility's restaurants, lounges, shops and activities so guests stay on premise and spend their money with the hotelier.

Years of serving the needs of the hospitality industry reveal that to attain those two goals, the hoteliers and others in this industry segment put digital signs to work in six categories, including: in-room channel; reader boards; door cards; way finding; advertising signage; and hybrid interactive.

Here's a brief description of each:

In-room channel
In in-room channel applications, a digital signage media server feeds an in-house cable TV system available in every guest's room. This approach can be simple -in the form of graphics and text to convey basic information about amenities and services- or much more elaborate where video commercials and promotional video messages are inserted.

Reader boards
Reader boards deliver information about events, including times and locations, to guests and visitors. Stationed in strategic high-traffic areas, digital signage reader boards increasing are replacing print and LED-based signs for this application. Typically, reader boards are oriented in a vertical (portrait) mode.

Door cards
Like reader boards, digital door cards inform visitors and guests of events, times and places. However, door cards are generally horizontal in orientation (portrait), much smaller (15 to 19 inches) and are positioned near the entrance of conference rooms, galleries, ballrooms and venues to inform guests of what's scheduled to occur inside.

Way finding
In this application, digital signs replace static directory signage to help guide guests to their destinations. Often, these signs can serve a dual purpose as advertising signs when traffic conditions are appropriate.

Advertising
A common goal of hotels, resorts and other hospitality businesses is to encourage patrons to spend their money on premise. To that end, these businesses create shops, restaurants, lounges and other amenities. Digital signs are a natural advertising medium for these businesses, because they offer the ability to day-part messaging so, for example, the same sign can advertise a coffee shop in the morning and a lounge in the evening.

Hybrid interactive
Offering the impact of digital signage and the interactivity of a kiosk, hybrid interactive digital signs are being used in hospitality settings to augment customer service experiences. For example, a hybrid interactive digital sign could be used at the concierge desk to allow guests to drill down to the information they desire when a hotel concierge is assisting another customer.

Digital signs may be used in other ways by the hospitality industry, but these six basic applications form the core. With digital signage, hotels, resorts and others in this market are better informing guests and reaching them with messaging that has a greater impact approaches.

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A new report forecasts revenue from narrowcast digital signage and in-store TV networks will climb to $2.59 billion by 2011.

Market research and consulting firm InfoTrends last month forecast strong growth for digital signage in North America for narrowcasting applications between now and 2011.

The research firm expects compound annual growth rate in the number of narrowcast digital signage screens of nearly 12 percent between 2006 and 2011. It also forecasts strong compound annual revenue growth of 18.5 percent for the period, attaining total revenue of $2.59 billion by 2011. For the sake of comparison, the narrowcasting industry was valued at $1.1 billion at the end of 2006 with an installed base of 630,000 screens at 97,000 sites.

The findings are part of a new InfoTrends report, "Narrowcasting: The Opportunity for Digital Signage and In-Store TV Networks," the third major study the researchers have conducted on this market.

Questions regarding the efficacy of using narrowcasting to deliver targeted advertising appear to be evaporating. InfoTrends reports that respondents to this year's study were much less concerned about the lack of measurement of ad program effectiveness than they were in its 2004 study. The researcher attributes the growing body of data showing narrowcast systems to be effective as the reason.

Additionally, the report showed that of the 51 current users of networked digital displays or in-store TV systems who responded to a structured survey for the report, 80 percent plan to increase the use of their network over the next three years, and the remaining 20 percent expect to maintain usage at current levels.

What's this all point to? Digital signage networks for narrowcast advertising are becoming part of the mainstream -not some sort of fringe experimental medium reserved for the daring and avant-garde. Rather than being seen as a risk in the eyes of media buyers, they are becoming an essential communications avenue for marketers and advertisers wishing to influence consumer spending decisions at the point of purchase.

It isn't particularly surprising that narrowcast digital signage networks are entering the mainstream. Put yourself in the shoes of advertising buyers and marketers who are witnessing a radical transformation of an advertising mainstay: television. Once a medium they thoroughly knew and understood, TV is moving away from a controllable, definable advertising proposition to one that's putting viewers in greater control of what they watch and when -most notably for this discussion, commercials.

Consider an article this week from the Denver Post trumpeting the fact that venerable ratings agency Nielsen Media Research has enhanced its tracking of TV viewers for the digital age. According to the article, viewing for one particular show after three days on a DVR was 108 percent of the live views of the same show. Sounds pretty good so far.

However, the article quotes a executive from Group M, a New York ad agency, as saying that many ad agencies have analyzed how viewers watch in delayed mode (i.e. via a DVR) and have determined that 60 percent skip the commercials. Viewed in light of the fact 18 percent of TV households have DVRs and more are on the way, and it becomes apparent that as so-called "live views" give away to "delayed mode" viewing, the number of viewers watching commercials will slide precipitously.

Narrowcast networks with digital signage displays positioned at the physical location where consumers decide to make a purchase don't give people the option of fast-forwarding past the commercial. For that reason alone, it wouldn't be surprising to see InfoTrends' forecast for digital signage narrowcast revenue growth and growth in the number of screens in North America exceeded.

Touch-screen technology is at the heart of many common technologies and is one of the key ingredients to hybrid, interactive digital signage.

Unless you live in a cave, you've probably noticed Apple has launched its much ballyhooed iPhone this week. AT&T, the phone's exclusive distributor for the first six months it's on the market, has already added thousands of employees nationwide to handle consumer demand at retail centers. It reports anticipating sidewalk campers waiting in line overnight for the new phone to go on sale.

Without a doubt, Apple's iPhone is shaping up to be the next, must-have for those who want to be a part of the hottest, latest, hippest trend. What makes the iPhone so sought-after? The answer is probably a little bit different for each customer, but many of those responses likely center on its cool, quick, easy touch-screen interface that will let users dial their way into the next generation of telephony -among other things.

Touch-screen technology is growing dramatically, according to market research firm iSuppli. The researcher forecasts that revenue generated by leading touch-screen technologies will grow to $4.4 billion by 2012, up from $2.4 billion in 2006. While the iPhones will play a part in this growth, touch-screen proliferation should also see a bump from the momentum building for hybrid, interactive digital signage.

Think of hybrid systems as part digital signage, part digital kiosk. When in digital signage mode, they playback video, sound, graphics, text and animation in a linear fashion. In other words, Segment A is followed by Segment B, etc. What sets them apart is when a viewer interacts with these screens. Immediately, they switch to an interactive mode, allowing the viewer to drill down to sought-after information. More often than not, the interface facilitating that interaction is a touch screen.

Touch-screen interactivity tied to digital signage is beginning to attract the attention of marketers nationwide because it not only draws digital signage viewers into their advertising messages and lets them communicate on a personal, customized level, but also because it gives them something other media can't: quantifiable response metrics.

Think about the last time you heard an ad on the radio. There's a good chance the announcer said something like, "Be sure to tell ABC Company that Joe Announcer from WXYZ Radio sent you." How about your last magazine? Was it filled with bound and blown-in response cards for special offers? What about newspaper coupons? They're the same thing -an effort in part to quantify the reaction of the public to a commercial offer.

The wonderful thing about hybrid, interactive digital signage -most often driven by touch-screen interaction- is it can deliver up-to-the-minute metrics about what viewers are interested in, and if set-up properly, who those consumers are.

Think about the value of gathering information from a network of hybrid, interactive digital signage systems installed at hundreds of fashion locations across the country. All day long, signs play back the retailer's linear marketing messages -building ambience, creating a mood and attracting interest. Periodically, customers approach the digital sign and touch it to access information about specific merchandise. The choices viewers make about what to touch can be saved and/or transmitted in real-time back to corporate headquarters.

Having that level of information about what's on the minds of customers is invaluable. Beyond simply letting the marketing department tweak its digital signage presentations, information like that can help merchandise buyers identify what's hot and what's not. Comparing it to cash register receipts can take analysis of marketing messages to a whole new level.

Members of the public are demonstrating they want to interact with technology to improve their lives. Why else would anyone consider camping out overnight on a sidewalk for a phone?

Desire like that among the public in the very least indicates people like having a tactile experience with technology. Best of all for marketers, those experiences can be tied directly to greater, quantifiable interaction with the public. That can mean nothing but good things for marketers wishing to influence buying decisions with their digital signage messaging.

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Smart digital signage communicators should prepare playlists with the appropriate response information before an emergency situation, like a fire or tornado, develops.

As I sat down to write this week's column, I can't get a simple song I learned so many years ago at Boy Scout camp out of my mind: "Be, be, be prepared, the motto of the Boy Scouts; Be, be, be prepared, the motto of the Scouts...."

Professional communicators responsible for creating content for digital signage networks and private TV channels should take note of that admonition. Being prepared for predictable emergency contingencies could mean the difference between safety, injury or even death.

While some emergency scenarios are unforeseen, many contingencies can be planned for. Fires, floods, severe weather conditions, to name a few, require predictable responses. Consider a fire evacuation plan in a large corporate building, school or medical facility. At this very moment, it's highly likely that printed signs warning not to take elevators in the event of a fire and displaying simple maps to the nearest stairways hang by those very elevators.

Those maps can serve as the basis for emergency response messaging on a signage system. Since digital signage networks rely on displays positioned in known locations, creating emergency evacuation maps and messages for the sectors occupied by the digital signs is a logical first step. The same approach is appropriate for tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings that advise people, based on their location in proximity to a given display, of where they should take shelter.

A conversation with your company's safety officer to learn the recommended actions building occupants should take in the event of these sorts of predictable contingencies could help to save lives.

For operators of digital signage networks and private TV channels that make the effort to prepare, contingency playlists stored on a media server can be instructed to interrupt the currently running playlist instantly. It's even possible in certain situations to network an emergency management computer with a digital signage media server so the correct contingency playlist can be run automatically and unattended. In other words, the fire escape playlist runs if heat or smoke sensors detect a fire and signal the emergency management computer which in turn communicates with the media server, and the playlist with the recommended tornado-safe areas runs if instructed to do so by the correct EAS alert message.

Automatically running a pre-produced emergency message playlist for a given contingency doesn't preclude adding up-to-the-second advisory information, however. If circumstances allow you to delay your evacuation, or if you work in an area not threatened by the contingency, your media server should allow you to create text crawls to present the latest warning and information without interrupting the contingency playlist. Doing so can make your efforts to communicate vital information in times of emergency all the more valuable to your audience.

I no longer wear a khaki uniform and a neckerchief, but those words reminding every troop member of the Scout Motto ring louder in my ears today than they did all those years ago. There's no substitute for being prepared to communicate the right message over your digital signage network or private TV channel in the event of predictable emergency contingencies. The time you take today to prepare may turn out to be some of the most important time you spend in your life.

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Adding Amber Alerts, severe weather warnings and emergency announcements from civil authorities to private TV and digital signage networks is straightforward.

Last week, I discussed the ability of private TV channels and digital signage networks to disseminate emergency alert messaging when a threat is posed. I also pointed out that unlike Emergency Alert System messages transmitted by radio and TV stations or the wailing siren in the distance, the delivery of emergency messaging via private TV channels and digital signage networks can target specific warnings and instructions to a defined group of people, who may be facing a unique emergency, such as a fire in their office building.

This week, I'll focus on main points you need to know if you want to prepare your digital signage network or private TV channel to deliver Emergency Alert System messaging from the National Weather Service or governmental authorities, including those at the local, state and federal level.

EAS warnings
The Emergency Alert System stems from the desire of the president of the United States to communicate with the public in times of national emergencies. In the early 1960s, the chief executive began allowing local and state authorities to use the system to transmit localized warnings.

The system has been designed to deliver messages quickly and automatically in the event of an emergency. Among its most conspicuous features to the public may be the automatic interruption of broadcast programming that replaces program audio with an aural alert and superimposes a text crawl with warning information at the bottom of the TV screen.

EAS works automatically largely because of the efforts of the Federal Communications Commission http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/eas.html to standardize the system and the cooperation of the nation's broadcasters to participate in the program.

To add EAS capability a private TV or digital signage network requires:

• a special weather radio receiver tuned to receive emergency warnings, such as tornado warnings issued by the National Weather Service for a given geographic area; or
• an EAS ENDEC or encoder/decoder that can transmit and receive digitally coded emergency messages;
• a communication interface between the ENDEC and the media server used to drive the private TV or digital signage network;
• media server software that automatically recognizes incoming EAS information, generates the appropriate text crawl, and interrupts the ongoing playlist or adds the emergency crawl.

Using a weather radio would only provide partial EAS capacity requiring constant monitoring by someone who's responsible for the digital signage network and direct physical intervention with the system. Using an ENDEC provides for full EAS coverage -specifically weather and emergency messages for local, state and national authorities.

The ENDEC receives transmitted EAS data that includes information about who transmitted the alert, for instance civil authorities or the National Weather Service, the type of emergency, such as flash flooding, tornado or Amber Alert, the geographic area of the emergency, how long the emergency message is valid and the when it was issued.

Onward and upward
The FCC has been active in promulgating rules to update the EAS system to take advantage of the latest digital technologies and new means to reach the American public. In May, the commission moved to add support for a new technology known as CAP -or Common Alerting Protocol- to the EAS delivery system. CAP will usher in support of a variety of transmission formats including text, audio and video via broadcast, cable, satellite and other networks.

Most notably it promotes next generation EAS, which among other things may lead to automatic generation of aural warnings based on text crawls to assist those with hearing impairments as well as generation of warnings for non-English speakers.

While these moves by the FCC will take time to play out, it's encouraging to note that the nation's EAS system continues to develop. In the meantime, there's a clear path for those with private TV and digital signage networks to traverse to support today's EAS messaging.

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As communicators on digital signage networks or private TV channels, you have the power to make a difference when an emergency situation arises.

There can hardly be a driver in America who hasn't been cruising down the highway when the regular programming on the radio is interrupted for a test of the Emergency Broadcast System. A brief warning that a test is about to occur is followed by a burst of tones that sounds like it's coming from a dial-up computer modem followed by a reminder that what was just aired was a test.

Or, perhaps you live a tornado-prone section of the country like I do. If so, we probably share this similar experience. Absorbed in the work at hand, you hear a whine in the distance that at first startles you and then makes you look at a clock and a calendar to confirm it's 11 a.m. on the first Tuesday of the month --the time local government authorities test the city's emergency warning sirens. If it isn't, you know your next step is to grab a portable radio and flashlight and head for the basement.

I'm not sure exactly when this loose network of government officials, broadcasters and local sirens coalesced into an organized system for alerting the public of an impending emergency - although it probably was the same time the USA entered into a protracted Cold War with the Soviet Union. However, I am certain the original planners of the system did not envision the existence of thousands of private TV channels and digital signage networks.

Yet, that's exactly where technology has taken us today. The existence of these networks gives corporations, universities, colleges, secondary and even primary educators, government agencies, the military and other institutions the opportunity to inform people within the reach of their private TV and digital signage networks of an unfolding emergency situation.

I would argue that in some situations the ability of these networks to deliver highly targeted messaging to a select audience makes them even more valuable than a blaring siren or even a broadcaster. It's a sad fact of life that we live in a time when a lone person or a small group can perpetrate an act of evil so deplorable that tens, hundreds or even thousands of innocent people can come face to face with peril and possibly death. In those situations, knowing where to go and what to do can mean the difference between life and death.

In a school, at an airport, in a post office, at a shopping mall, around the campus of a large corporation or even the confines of a small business, a digital signage network or private TV network can be used as a closed-circuit Emergency Alert System. "Terror Alert: Evacuate Terminal A," "Emergency: Gunman in North Wing of Building," or "Warning: Fire On Third Floor -Use West Stairway to Evacuate." These are all vital, yet simple messages that these networks of flat panels and TVs can display to stack the odds in favor of saving lives.

Additionally, with the right software, hardware and interface, the media servers used to schedule and playback digital signage networks and private TV channels can be tied directly into the Emergency Alert System (EAS) to playback warnings of larger dangers, like tornados, flash floods and civil emergencies.

In the next couple of columns, I will lay out some of the technical details of setting up a digital signage network or private TV channel to support the EAS system. (Don't worry. You won't need to be an engineer or computer programmer to understand what's required and how to employ it.) I'll also offer a few tips you might find valuable in preparing for emergencies.

Often in our professional lives we get so focused on our core task -be it selling more widgets, posting our school's social activities, class schedules and menus or welcoming visitors to our companies- that it is easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. We are professional communicators first. We have a powerful medium at our disposal, and we can help to make a difference and possibly save lives when an emergency situation presents itself.   

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A recent article in The Los Angeles Times says out-of-home advertising is offering an important alternative to traditional TV commercials.

The concept of advertising with media outside of the home gained a good degree of notoriety Sunday in The Los Angeles Times with a major article by staff writer Alana Semuels.

The 1,000-word article, "Now showing very near you...",  makes a strong case for digital signage networks and advertising as well as other out-of-home media. In the article, Semuels identifies digital video recorders as a major culprit in diluting the frequency with which traditional television commercials are viewed. As a result, advertisers are hungry for an effective substitute, and out-of-home ads appear to be the solution.

Semuels elaborates on a major theme of several of my recent columns, namely every day more TV viewers are skipping past commercials with their DVRs, making in-store, out-of-home advertising all the more appealing. (Two of my earlier columns discussing the impact of DVRs on TV viewing, include: "Digital Signage Payoff: What Is A Challenge For TV May Be A Boon For Digital Signage Networks" and "Digital Signage Market Poised to Skyrocket.")

According to the LA Times story, about 20 percent of U.S. households now have digital video recorders. The ease with which viewers in these homes can skip past the commercials has a growing number of advertisers interested in out-of-home ads on flat panel displays near the point of sale where they can influence shoppers making purchasing decisions. And, if they can't influence a particular buying decision, at least they can elevate brand awareness.

Quoting San Francisco-based Premier Retail Networks, which has 200,000 screens in 6,500 stores nationwide, the article points out 42 percent of shoppers remember a brand they see on in-store screens, twice number for television commercials.

It's no wonder then that a recent forecast from PQ Media Research indicates that spending on out-of-home advertising will grow 27.7 percent this year. The statistics, part of the company's "PQ Media Alternative Out-of-Home Media Forecast 2007-2011" report show the category to be among the fastest growing segments in the media industry.

Last year, media spending on out-of-home advertising reached $1.69 billion, up 27 percent from the 2005. In fact, spending on out-of-home advertising has grown at double-digit rates every year from 2001-2006 with a compounded annual growth rate of 22.6 percent, according to the PQ Media report.

In discussing the reasons for the growth, Patrick Quinn, president and CEO of PQ Media said: "Unlike its mass media peers, alternative out-of-home advertising is impervious to channel or web surfing and is immune to audience fragmentation."

PQ Media identified several factors driving the growth of out-of-home advertising, including:

• advertiser perception that out-of-home ads provide high engagement, targeting options, proximity to point-of-sale, measurable impact and cost effectiveness;
• data indicating exposure to and recall of these media are growing;
• research suggesting the vast majority of consumers view alternative out-of-home media as favorable and educational;
• new technology enabling companies to launch digital advertising platforms that generate higher revenues than the conventional formats they replace.

PQ Media divides out-of-home advertising into three categories: video advertising networks and screens; digital billboards and displays; and ambient advertising. The research firm has found video advertising networks is the largest category, accounting for 60 percent of all out-of-home ad spending. Spending on this category grew 28 percent in 2006 to $1.01 billion with double-digit growth in four markets: in-theater, in-office, in-store and in-transit, according to the company.

High-profile news articles, like the one from the LA Times, draw the public's attention to this market. More importantly, this sort of coverage helps busy ad professionals focused on traditional media segments to notice the out-of-home advertising market. As these ad pros have their own "Ah-Hah" moments thanks to these sorts of articles, it won't take too much effort to back up the perception that out-of-home advertising is a growing, important new segment. Research, such as that from PQ Media, makes it easy for out-of-home advertising to be taken seriously -and more importantly for ad buyers to consider it as a new part of their media mix. As they do, out-of-home advertising and digital signage are likely to enjoy even wider acceptance and use.

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The increasing use of HD display panels in digital signage networks means content creators must find sources for high-def material.

When I think about digital signage, I'm sometimes reminded of the perpetually hungry, ever-growing plant from the musical "Little Shop of Horrors." You might remember that unusual flora. It's the talking, singing Venus Flytrap on steroids that constantly demands "Feed Me!" I can't help but think of that giant man-eating plant, because its appetite for flesh was as large and insatiable as that of digital signage for content.

Content is the currency of digital signage. Without it, digital signage would be about as appealing as looking at a dimly lit mirror. So, it's imperative that digital signage users source, create and schedule enough of the right kinds of content to attract and hold the interest of their audiences till they've delivered their intended message.

Not an easy task under normal conditions, the job is even harder when high definition is added to the equation. The appeal of HD content on a digital sign is straightforward. High definition television's ability to reproduce enough picture detail to convey a previously unattainable sense of realism is powerful. Sports fans who watch their favorite teams in HD never want to go back to their ordinary TVs, and nature buffs who tune into Discovery HD Theater can feel overwhelmed at times by the Mother Nature's majesty.

Transplant that HD realism to a retail digital signage network, for example, where marketers want to create a specific mood or portray their merchandise in the best possible light. Under those circumstances, understanding the allure of high definition to digital signage marketers is as clear as an HD image itself.

However, the issue of sourcing HD content -particularly video originated in high definition- is significantly less clear. While it seems that every week another press announcement trumpets the arrival of a new TV channel or cable network in HD, the reality is the video production industry is still in a transition period between conventional television and HDTV. HD content can be shot for your digital signage needs, but there is a strong demand for HD production services and limited supply -so be prepared. On a positive note, those content creators who wish to shoot their own HD digital signage content have a broad selection of relatively affordable camcorders from which to choose.

Another source of HD content is your company's film library. Remember continuous-tone film is a high-resolution -or at the risk of confusing things "high definition"- medium. Film can be transferred to HD video, and depending on your project, doing so might make sense.

Upconverting standard definition television to HDTV is an option as well. Depending on how you intend to use the content, this may be an entirely suitable solution for your HD content needs. While it may not be ideal, upconverting select content has significant advantages over shooting original HD material in terms of cost, speed and opportunity. Remember, many programs you're ooing and ahhing at today on your HDTV may include sequences that have been upconverted from standard definition footage. That's especially likely to be the case for historical file footage.

If you're not looking for original HD content, you're options are a little broader. Cable, satellite, and even Telco TV services make a variety of channels and networks available in high definition. It is even possible to turn a computer with a USB 2.0 port and a USB device that's an ATSC tuner along with a loop antenna into an HD receiver/digital video recorder for terrestrial (over-the-air) broadcast HDTV content. While I specifically am not advocating unauthorized use of copyrighted material, the availability of the USB HDTV tuner and recorder does increase your flexibility and options.

Feeding digital signage's insatiable appetite for content has never been easy, and HD makes the task even more troublesome. But you are not without options. Originating HD content, transferring existing film assets to HD and upconverting ordinary video content to high definition are starting points. With time, HD production capabilities will become so prevalent that creating high definition content will be taken for granted. Until that time point, creative digital signage content pros will assess their resources and employ the options that make sense today.

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When it comes to HD, it's not one size fits all.

Last week, I made a simple point in this space, namely that just because a display device, such as a plasma or LCD panel, is flat doesn't mean that it's capable of displaying high definition content as part of digital signage messaging.

By way of review of last week's column, a display panel can be SD, or standard definition, ED, or enhanced definition, or HD, high definition. Displays are made up of individual picture elements, called pixels. Basically, the idea is the more pixels, the higher the resolution of an image. Thus, an SD display with a pixel count of 704 (horizontal) x 480 (vertical) has less resolution than an ED display with 852 x 480 pixels. HD displays, which have even more pixels and are at the top of the resolution food chain for displays, come in three flavors: 720p, 1080i and 1080p. (More on the "i" and the "p" in a moment.)

A 720p HD display has 1280 pixels (horizontal) by 720 (vertical); 1080i and 1080p displays have 1920 pixels by 1080 pixels, or more than 2 million individual picture elements. The letters "i" and "p" stand for interlaced and progressive, respectively. Interlaced displays, like ordinary TV sets and 1080i HDTVs, paint individual lines of pixels back and forth top to bottom across the display on the odd numbered lines (in HDTVs those are 1, 3, 5...1079) first and then the evens (2, 4, 6...1080) before beginning the process over and over. Taken together the odd numbered line "field" and the even numbered line field create one "frame," or complete still image. There are 30 such frames displayed per second.

Progressive displays, like computer monitors and 1080p HDTVs, display lines sequentially (1, 2, 3... 1080) before beginning the process again. These 1080p HD displays paint 60 new still images on the screen every second. With twice the frame rate (60 versus 30), 1080p demands twice the amount of data as 1080i.

That difference in frame rates means different things to different parties interested in high definition. To marketers using an HD as the display technology in a digital signage network, 1080p is the top-of-the-line image quality they can expect to achieve for the foreseeable future. If the message they are communicating requires the utmost resolution, 1080p may be the right choice. However, 1080p displays are more expensive and there will be a price to pay in terms of content storage required to drive that messaging.

To broadcasters who must work within the law administered by the FCC for transmission of HD, 1080p is too much. Simply given what they must work with, 1080p is beyond their capacity to deliver. Thus, 1080i and 720p are the broadcast HD formats.

To movie studios wishing to distribute their films in the highest display format available in the home, 1080p is the answer. Much of the buzz over Blu-ray and HD-DVD optical discs is in part about the ability of the competing formats to deliver superb image quality. Those formats -and their use of a blue frequency laser with a shorter wavelength that can write more data per area of storage- were designed to be able to write the all of the 1080p data to disk that's needed to playback a full-length movie plus bonus material.

But here's the most important party in the 1080p HD resolution equation: the audience. Whether you're a digital signage marketer, a broadcaster or a movie studio, you are faced with same question: How do I affordably deliver the level of quality to my audience that satisfies my desired communications goal? In other words, how much resolution is enough for the communications task at hand?

Only you can answer that question. To illustrate how subjective the answer is, consider this: ABC, ESPN, Fox and My Network TV rely on 720p, or 720 progressive lines, for HD service while NBC, CBS and PBS rely on 1080i. Perhaps before you decide which level of HD resolution is most appropriate for your high definition digital signage network, you should flip between ESPN's "Sportscenter HD" (720p), "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" (1080i) and "March of the Penguins" (1080p) playing back from an HD-DVD player or "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" (1080p) from a Blu-ray player on your 1080p display. You may be surprised by what you observe.

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Just because a digital signage monitor is flat does not mean that it's high definition.

The most obvious thing about digital signage is the display panel. It's the first thing you see, and probably the last thing you think about once it's hung and showing the content you want others to see.

But did you know that just because your digital signage messaging is playing back on a flat panel plasma or LCD that it's not necessarily being shown in HD quality? While they're somewhat less common today, for the past few years display makers have marketed -right next to the HD panels- something known as ED panels or TVs. EDTV stands for "Enhanced Definition Television" -something that's better, to be sure, than the ordinary television in most homes across America, but nowhere near as good as HDTVs and HD monitors. So, what makes one panel "enhanced" and another "high-def"? Basically, its pixels, scanning and terminology.

Pixels first
If your interest in digital signage is more about what it can do for you than how it does it, you might not be very familiar with some of the basics. First, a pixel is a picture element. Many say it's the smallest picture element in a display, but maybe a better way to think of it is as the smallest whole picture element in a display. That's because just like Gaul, all pixels are divided into three parts -red, green and blue. Those parts are often referred to as sub-pixels. But for the sake of this discussion, let's stick with pixels.

In plasmas and LCDs, pixel count is pretty cut-and-dry. These displays are made up of rows and columns of picture elements or pixels. An SD panel -or standard definition panel, the closest thing to your ordinary home TV- will have 480 rows and 720 pixels across. EDTVs have the same number of rows, 480, and 853 pixels across.

Besides having about 20 percent more pixels across, another important distinction between the two is the type of scanning used. An SD display is interlaced just like your fingers are when you do "Here's the church, and here's the steeple...." Drawing one complete picture, or frame, in an interlaced display requires the monitor to scan the odd number rows in an image sequentially first, i.e. 1, 3, 5 etc. and then the even numbered rows 2, 4, 6 etc. Together those two interlaced "fields" make up a frame. There are about 60 fields per second, or about 30 frames per second in SD video. (I won't trouble you with the why regarding the term "about.")

These interlaced fields are displayed so quickly that the scanned odds are still aglow, although decaying, while the evens are being scanned. However, that decay in the glow and constant refresh account for a flicker that's visible to some.

ED monitors are progress scan displays. Like computer monitors, they scan lines, 1, 2, 3, etc. all the way to line 480. It's the greater number of pixels and this progressive scanning that makes them better than SD, or in other words, enhanced.

Enter HD
HD or high definition can produce a view of the world that's lifelike. If you doubt that, flip on the Discovery Channel and then flip over to Discovery HD on an HDTV. You will be amazed.

There are many different types of high definition standards, but you only have to be concerned about a few things when it comes to digital signage. First and foremost, HD is pixel count. If it's got at least 1280 x 720 pixels, it qualifies as HD. However, here's where things get a little confusing. HDTV and monitors also come with 1920 pixels across and 1080 pixels vertically, and they come with lots of different pixel counts in between. Those "tweeners" have more to do with the manufacturing capabilities and priorities of the company making the panel than they do with the actual HD standard.

Like the difference between SD and ED, there are scanning type differences among HDTVs as well. First, there is progressive scan called 720p (row 1, 2, 3... 720). Then there is 1080i, or 1080 interlaced (1, 3, 5...1079 followed by 2, 4, 6...1080). Finally there is 1080p, which some HD marketers call Full HD (implying that the rest aren't quite HD, which is misleading and self-serving in my opinion).

Not quite as they seem
Without a doubt, HDTVs are burgeoning in the home and HD panels are becoming popular displays for digital signage. Their ability to reproduce lifelike images is breathtaking. That's powerful clay in the hands of digital signage sculptors.

But don't be confused. Just because a panel is flat, it's not necessarily HD. Look for the panel's resolution in pixels. Find out what type of scanning it uses. Together, those two pieces of information can tell you what you're looking at, even if your eyeballs aren't sure. It can also save you the headache of mistakenly acquiring the ED monitors that seemed like a steal when you thought you were buying HD.

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