News Release

Cisco Reaches 3,000-Customer Milestone in Digital Signage

Cisco Digital Signs Enable Multiple Industries to Transform Communication and Collaboration; New Innovations and Product Line Extensions Underscore Cisco's Market Momentum
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Feb 21, 2011

SAN JOSE, Calif., Feb. 21, 2011 – Cisco today announced that more than 3,000 customers have deployed Cisco® Digital Signs technology. Recently named the new worldwide market-share leader in digital signage software by Frost & Sullivan in the firm's forthcoming report, "World Digital Signage Systems Market," Cisco joined the digital signage market in 2007 and has rapidly introduced innovations around digital signage scalability and reliability, network integration, and content development. To date, Cisco digital signage solutions are broadly deployed in 85 countries, with customers benefiting from Cisco technology across a variety of industries including retail, financial services, hospitality, education, health care, and sports and entertainment, among others.

Organizations across the globe are recognizing the benefits of digital signage as a transformative technology across many uses, including business communication and collaboration, customer interaction, and direct marketing. Today, Cisco is also announcing several additional customers that are reaping these benefits, including the luxury hotel property JW Marriott; West Texas A&M University; France's largest banking institution Crédit Agricole Nord de France; Melbourne International Airport; and the leading provider of integrated electronic communications services in Cyprus CYTA (Cyprus Telecommunications Authority). These customers are the latest among thousands who are harnessing the power of the Cisco network for live streaming and on-demand video, motion graphics and other dynamic digital content via high-resolution digital screens. Cisco's network-based approach is also helping customers realize productivity savings while enhancing the consumer, student or fan experience.

Additional Highlights

  • Currently, Cisco Digital Signs technology is deployed across
    • More than 50 percent of the top 20 global banks
    • Four of the top five global retailers
    • More than 300 higher education institutions
    • More than 150 K-12 school districts
    • More than 20 sporting stadiums worldwide
  • Further underscoring its technology innovation and leadership, at the Digital Signage Expo (DSE), Feb. 22-25 in Las Vegas (booth #1310), Cisco will showcase new technologies that demonstrate capabilities around network integration, endless scalability, unlimited flexibility and more. These developments include:
    • Enhanced Video Streaming to Digital Signs – Expanding the Digital Media Suite solution, the Cisco MXE 3500 (Media Experience Engine) media transformation platform adds digital signage capabilities. The MXE 3500 now ingests live video streams from virtually any video device or endpoint and delivers direct to digital signs, transforming a static digital sign into a portal for live event coverage, employee training sessions, organizational communications, public safety alerts and more.
    • Expanded Line of Cisco LCDs – Cisco is introducing three new professional-grade high-definition LCD models in 42-, 47- and 55-inch sizes, rounding out its current portfolio of digital sign screens and providing customers with more options for a variety of signage use cases and deployments. The Cisco LCD Professional Series displays combine high performance and reliability with network-based control and diagnostic capabilities.
    • The First Network-Aware Digital Media Player - The Cisco Digital Media Player  4310 is the industry's first smart media player. It integrates Cisco medianet architecture technology and is capable of automatically configuring to a digital signage network at setup. The DMP 4310 combines network-based scalable technology with Adobe Flash to create the ultimate canvas for compelling, interactive digital signage content. 

Supporting Quotes:

  • Aravindh Vanchesan, program manager for retail systems and kiosk units, Frost & Sullivan
  • "With continuous growth, Cisco has been successful in delivering digital signage solutions across a diverse set of customers with varying requirements. Cisco has witnessed repeat business volume and added new customers in just four short years, demonstrating its market-share leadership position in the digital signage industry."

  • Florencia Tabeni, general manager, JW Marriott Marquis Miami
  • "The vision of bringing a memorable experience to our guests is at the very core of the exclusive JW Marriott Marquis Miami. By working with Cisco, we are able to create an environment within our property that combines cutting-edge technology with unmatched customer service. Utilizing the Cisco Digital Signs solution, we were able to deploy a unique virtual concierge in our lobby that literally puts our customers in touch with technology. Via a high-definition screen a real, live person can help our guests on demand, while providing a split-screen featuring on-screen maps, pictures, video and more to create an information-rich, interactive and fun experience for our clientele."

  • Thierry Decanter, IT director, Crédit Agricole Nord de France
  • "We need to communicate differently with our customers. Digital signage seemed like a good opportunity to meet this expectation. It is within this framework that Cisco has been selected as technology partner. Outside and inside, our customers now have targeted information about our products and services, but also practical information (news, weather, events, etc.). The Cisco solution has provided us with responsiveness and efficiency in the delivery of content."

  • James Webb, chief information officer, West Texas A&M University
  • "With record enrollment growth and a myriad of undergraduate, master's and doctoral programs, West Texas A&M University needed a solution that would dramatically change the way in which it communicated with students, faculty and staff. Cisco Digital Signs not only established a comprehensive framework to deliver next-generation communications, but allowed us to integrate the system into academic learning environments and expand the university's safety and security alert system. With Cisco, we successfully and seamlessly bridged the gap between academics, campus safety and information technology to connect with today's generation of students and provide meaningful information to foster success."

  • Mark Funston, information technology manager, Melbourne Airport
  • "As one of Australia's busiest transportation hubs, it is important that Melbourne Airport also be recognized as one of the most modern, high-quality and innovative airports in the world. To achieve this, we worked together with Cisco and the Frame Group to deploy more than 400 digital signs for up-to-the-minute sharing of flight and gate information, news, directional guidance and emergency messaging. In alignment with our commitment to green practices and carbon neutrality, the Cisco Digital Media Manager also enables our staff to automatically power down displays when flights have departed and areas clear of passengers. As such, the airport will be able to consume 80 percent less power than with our previous PC-based solution."

  • Marios Antoniou, systems engineer for sales management, Cyprus Telecommunications Authority (CYTA)
  • "A static advertisement, like a poster, only holds customers' interest for a few seconds, and that's if they notice at all. With our Cisco Digital Signs solution, we capture the attention of retail customers waiting in line by playing IPTV. Once we have their attention, customers can't help also seeing colorful advertisements for products, services, and promotions playing on another part of the display."

  • Janice Litvinoff, general manager, Digital Media Systems business unit, Cisco
  • "The digital signage market continues to be an important area for Cisco innovation, and we are delighted that more than 3,000 customers around the world are using our network-based offerings to unlock and scale the power of rich media and video within their organizations. The rapid adoption of Cisco digital signage is a testament to our commitment to provide an end-to-end, flexible solution that is easy to deploy, highly interoperable with other technologies, and firmly built atop Cisco's unrivaled network capabilities."

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