Comments on: High-Tech Walking Billboards

By: Pat Kitano

Pat Kitano — Fri, 17 Nov 2006 05:25:09 +0000

Oh, speaking of billboards… talking or otherwise … I think they will also approach the futuristic concept of communicating directly with the pedestrian in some GIS enabledform.

The land of billboards is Seoul Korea… drive on the crest of a small hill and you’ll see dozens of LED billboards dotting the horizon like old drive in movies. Tokyo has them, not as many as Seoul, but packed in commercial areas like Shibuya…the Bay Area seems to have only one prominent LED billboard in Redwood City off 101. I guess Americans still think of billboards from an environmental eyesore perspective.

By: Pat Kitano

Pat Kitano — Fri, 17 Nov 2006 05:15:42 +0000

JF - - -

I was part of the virtual reality movement in the late 90’s… I remember a wearable widget company founded by a LA-based VR guy that appeared and disappeared with a lot of hype…

The VR company I managed back then was the precursor to SecondLife… although we had the vision of the SnowCrash virtual world, it took broadband and public acceptance (read young people’s acceptance) of community to reach a trajectory.

I lived in NYC in 1996 and was one of the first 100 members on sixdegrees, I think it was the first social networking site… that concept seemed to die in 2001 and reappeared with Ryze and Friendster in 2002.

Wearable computers will definitely happen.. it will reincarnate as wearable widgets… 2012 is when I’m assuming it will be mainstream… I’m betting the first movers will have them by Xmas 2007… you’ve already seen a Times Square scrolling newsfeed on a belt buckle? We’re almost there…

By: sellsius°

sellsius° — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 14:50:22 +0000

I invested in company that made watch sized wearable computers, thinking wearable portable computers would be the next big thing. Lost my shirt. Maybe wearable video can make it. I’ve already seen belt buckles that run a message like an electric billboard. Cabs have movable digital billoards. Soon buses. Did you ever see the post we did on talking Coke billboards over in Sweden?

http://tinyurl.com/tsapc

By: Pat Kitano

Pat Kitano — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 08:15:00 +0000

I love NY. It’s the only place where walking videoboards exist! This is only a transition - I’m going to predict that wearable video as a self expressive media will become mainstream by 2012.

–pk

By: sellsius°

sellsius° — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 06:07:26 +0000

Yes, definitely conventions. Maybe in a large city or tourist location? On the boardwalk in summer? On a college campus for rentals? Use interns or pay per lead? Use it for consumer surveys? What about a video “how to” like staging?

Maybe it’s better suited to businesses other than real estate?

Would the possible TV or news coverage offfset the cost?

By: Doug Quance

Doug Quance — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 04:42:53 +0000

Neat idea… but I don’t see it as being all that cost-effective.

Take the cost of the unit, add to that the cost of the personnel to wear it (as well as maintain it) then divide it by the number of eyeballs… and I think the cost-per-impression would be too high.

But, in certain venues like conventions… it might be worth it.

By: sellsius°

sellsius° — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 01:32:22 +0000

Video is just so engaging to the raised on TV generation. I have even seen brokers using video in the window of their storefronts in Manhattan to catch the eyes of passersby.

When we had a brokerage in Manhattan the first thing we did was wrap the bug. A real attetnion grabber. People would not hesitate to ask about it.

Did you check the link for Magink?

By: Daniel Rothamel

Daniel Rothamel — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 01:04:32 +0000

We have a 32″ flat-panel TV in our office that displays listings. People always like watching that. We have a wrap on the vehicle that we use to show property, so I would totally be open to using a device like this one. Now, how to make one for myself . . .