In an old “Futurama” episode, the series protagonist Philip J. Fry experiences the advertisement method of the year 3000 for the first time: commercials delivered through dreams. He is outraged. Back in his native millennium, advertisements were in the streets, on the sides of cars and on TV, but they stayed out of his mind.
Marketers haven’t found a way to wirelessly inject product placement into our REM cycles yet, but they are getting closer, already able to make promotions appear in our pockets, thanks to Toronto-based marketing solutions company iSign Media.
Announcing plans to bring wireless connectivity to its customers all over the United States through a partnership with Verizon (no stranger to distributing wireless services where they are most needed), iSIGN expects that internet connectivity for their patent pending technology will allow for live updating and statistic cultivating in areas where Internet access would not normally be available.
The iSIGN smart antennas work in all areas, indoor and outdoor, and in all sorts of weather using a combination Bluetooth/Wi-Fi transceiver to allow permission-based advertisements to broadcast their way into the pockets of nearby potential customers. The service is obviously free for those receiving the ads, and iSIGN expects that allowing for wireless access on the antenna’s end will keep costs low for the business owner as well.
Wireless capability brings to the table the usual benefits here. Installation becomes easier and faster, and maintenance fees decrease. iSIGN Media also expects that managing its backend services, such as consumer analytics and remote ad scheduling through the Internet, will be a great boon to outdoor businesses, gas stations and restaurants.
iSIGN has installed antennas in 1,440 Mac’s convenience stores, and with wireless solutions now on the table in America, Alex Romanov, iSIGN’s chief executive officer, says: “We have built a solution that is ready to provide the largest possible digital merchandising, advertising network in the United States."
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