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Some of the leading firsthand impressions from Digital Signage Today Editor Daniel Brown on visiting InfoComm 2023 in Orlando, Florida. Trends include: people are BACK in a big way (attendance AND exhibitors) now that pandemic travel strictures have eased globally. DEI and sustainability grow in industry priority, along with content.
It would be impossible to summarize an experience like InfoComm (let alone see all of the incredible technology on display), but I’ll try anyway!
Held at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando Florida, this was my first-ever InfoComm, and I was impressed by the sheer quantity of people (alongside the quantity and quality of exhibitors), which indeed was one of the leading themes of the event: InfoComm, and the digital signage/pro AV industry, is back in a big way.
It’s hard to sum it all up, but after interviewing dozens of participants and thought leaders from various participating industries, I took away seven major points from my first InfoComm (and look forward with anticipation to future ones!)
Takeaway one: We are BACK, baby!
People, exhibitors, live events, and the industry are booming. Last year’s event was slightly reduced in attendance thanks to international folks being under various lockdowns or travel restrictions, but this year, attendance was booming, and the sheer amount of people visiting was a common theme in interviews.
Oh, and the wide variety of international exhibitors and visitors highlighted another trend we’ve been covering: the digital signage, pro AV and DOOH industries are exploding worldwide in various emerging markets, including LATAM, APAC, ANZ, strengthening growth in the Eurozone and exciting rumblings in Africa (led by the cradle of digital signage innovation in South Africa).
SquareV LED example at InfoComm 2023. Video credit: Daniel Brown/Networld Media Group. |
Takeaway two: Lowering costs + rising quality = more players.
The number and quantity of exhibitors was a little overwhelming at times, and I often found myself frozen in my tracks gawking at various types of displays, especially innovative types of screens such as transparent LED, touch mirrors and touchscreens on floors. A consensus among many of the dozens of industry leaders I interviewed was that the rapid, ongoing fall in prices for the tech (particularly LED) has led to a proliferation of high-quality displays on the market and an influx of new contenders in various categories and verticals — all of which tends to make the ecosystem stronger overall.
Also, every surface, floor to ceiling, is becoming a screen, which means new types of content and emerging ways to create immersive experiences, from the classroom and boardroom to the home and store (and everywhere in between!)
There was also quite a bit in terms of transparent displays, from LG’s transparent OLED to examples like the MUXWAVE display below.
MUXWAVE Holographic Invisible Screen in action at InfoComm 2023. Video credit: Daniel Brown/Networld Media Group. |
Takeaway three: Artificial Intelligence
AI, of course, is big, including major self-service and kiosk applications, along with QSR and restaurant service innovations (including drive through screens).
AI is also helping with many production elements across the audiovisual spectrum, making it easier, faster, and cheaper to optimize your content or broadcast on the fly with an ever-smaller team thanks to AI integrations.
One example came in an impromptu AI avatar demo courtesy of David Defelici, an AI solutions developer and VP of business development at Telecine Multimedia.
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AI avatars, often powered by ChatGPT and other AI-based technologies, continue to grow in applications across digital signage and kiosks, including drive-through and self-service applications and more. Photo taken at Crimson AV booth at InfoComm Orlando 2023. Image credit: Daniel Brown/Networld Media Group. |
Takeaway four: AR production
Augmented Reality is exploding. AR, VR, and mixed reality as a whole are invading the production space in a very big way (see samples below), and the AI revolution discussed above is making the process ever faster and more powerful (we recently reported on the emergence of live SFX emerging from the Move.ai-disguise partnership).
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Virtual production using augmented reality (along with VR, MR, and AI-powered technologies) is a MASSIVE theme this year; for example, a powerful demo at the Planar booth of a highly integrated approach to live production and presentation. Image: Daniel Brown/Networld Media Group. |
Takeaway five: The ecosystem and “coopetition” continue to grow
The ecosystem is more powerful than ever. We have discussed the rise of ecosystems thinking and “coopetition” in many features and interviews, but hearing and seeing firsthand at InfoComm how much collaboration is happening between operators of all sizes in various verticals to build the next generation of this industry (and yes, including big names that are often considered competitors) only cemented this trend in my mind.
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Form factor continues evolving in exciting ways across categories, as in this Magic Cube example from TaylorLED. Image: Daniel Brown/Networld Media Group. |
Takeaway six: “OK, now do content!”
We have A+ hardware, so now people are really focusing on what you present ON that hardware.
I’ve been told that display resolution has, in many ways, maxed out the capacity of the human eye to see and appreciate it. It’s kind of an analogy for an industry-wide realization that I heard about in countless booths: we have amazing hardware, displays, technology, and that’s great, but now people are realizing that you absolutely must create engaging content that creates a dynamic canvas and experience for viewers, regardless of what hardware or type of display you’re using.
Don’t get me wrong — the rise of innovations like transparent LED, holograms, various pillar, cube, and curved displays (including a gigantic globe, pictured below) is eye-catching, but that’s often because excellence in hardware goes hand-in-hand with careful content design.
VCONN Digital Interactive display showing ultra-high definition and semi-transparent trends from the show. Video credit: Daniel Brown/Networld Media Group. |
Takeaway seven: Sustainability, DEI, ESG
I’ve heard some people call it a “triple bottom line” approach to business, but whatever term you prefer, the biggest names in the industry are leading the charge to make sustainability and equitable practices (including diversity, equity, and inclusion) to be incorporated into the definition of profitability and success.
We’ve covered this in depth across features, news items, and interviews over the past year, and almost unanimously I saw this confirmed in conversations at various booths. These were major themes in various educational panels (which, alas, I simply didn’t have time to attend during my two day power run through the event).
Notable for me was AVIXA’s decision not to remove diversity education content in the event despite recent political developments in Florida and the U.S. at large. As reported by NPR, such developments include Florida governor (and Republican presidential hopeful) Ron DeSantis’s signature of a bill banning public colleges and universities from spending on diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
“AVIXA is very proud of the work we are doing with the AV community to bring discussions on DEI out in the open and support programs that are making a positive impact,” David Labuskes, CEO at AVIXA (the organizing body behind InfoComm), said in a press release last May regarding the DEI programming. “We want everyone to feel welcome to this exciting industry, because everyone deserves to belong and for their story to be heard. “In addition, it’s critical that the environment where we host InfoComm is inclusive to everyone. Laws that adversely affect women, LGBTQ+, Black, Latino, Asian, Indigenous, disabled persons, and others are not in line with AVIXA’s values. Orange County, Florida, the home for InfoComm 2023, shares our dedication to DEI and takes deliberate action to support diverse communities.”
Closing strong
I will need days to process all the incredible information and visuals I absorbed at this year’s InfoComm, along with the privilege of seeing so many beloved faces in the industry.
From hugging longtime #avtweeps and interviewing thought leaders to catching up with mentors and respected colleagues, this event showed me like no other that the global digital signage industry isn’t just back — it’s hungry, it’s growing, and it’s stronger than ever!
Some powerful form factor examples from the show floor, including variations on cube ideation from TaylorLED and a wide variety from Rstars Technologies, including kiosks and an EV charging station. Video credit: Daniel Brown/Networld Media Group. |
Images and video credit: Daniel Brown/Networld Media Group.
Related:
Digital signage and rise of ‘coopetition’ | SOS: State of Signage | Digital Signage Today
AI, 3D avatars revolutionize customer service, drive-thru | Digital Signage Today
“It’s just a world of possibilities out there” — the future of digital signage is bright | Digital Signage Today
Diving deep with Bluefin’s new CEO, Frank Pisano | Pixel Pitch | Interviews | Digital Signage Today
Daniel Brown is the editor of Digital Signage Today. He is an accomplished technology writer whose experience includes creating knowledge base content for a major university’s computing services department. His previous experience also includes IT project management, technical support and education. He can usually be found in a coffee shop near a large pile of books.
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