Introduction To The Software That Drives A Digital Signage Network

Software plays a major role in making sure the right digital signage content clips reach the correct screens. It ensures that a venue's visitors are greeted with the right segments. Behind the scenes, a number of applications work to organize, push, and record the loops that play across your network.

Most people are unfamiliar with the types of software involved in a DOOH system. Moreover, most are unaware of what each application contributes. We'll describe the details below, beginning with the software that organizes your network's playlists. You'll learn how your content travels throughout the network to eventually reach the screens.

Once your content has been loaded onto a central server, it needs to be organized and managed. This is done in a content management system (CMS). This is an application that provides a bird's-eye view of your clips, and allows you to place them into separate folders for better management. You can also move segments back and forth between folders as you put together playlists.

The CMS allows you to create loops that will play uninterrupted on your screens. In most cases, you'll schedule them by order and time. You'll be able to create distinct playlists for each day, or do so for different periods throughout the day. For example, you might build one loop for Mondays, another for weekday evenings, and a third for Thanksgiving. Each can be scheduled well in advance, and be expected to play as intended.

Another responsibility of the content management system is to ensure that each clip in each playlist is played on the right screen at the right time. The application monitors the activity sent to the screens. If a clip fails to play correctly, the CMS will record the incident so you can troubleshoot the problem later.

Once your content loops have been created on your server, you'll need to send the appropriate clips, along with scheduling information, to the individual media players. This is the job of transfer software. If your entire DOOH system is located within a single venue, this information can be sent through your internal network. If, on the other hand, you're sending playlists to multiple venues, you'll likely do so over the internet.

There are two methods for ensuring that the right digital signage clips and loops reach the correct players. The method used dictates where the transfer application is loaded. First, your playlists can be requested by the individual media players. The transfer app is loaded to the players, each of which make separate calls to the server.

The second method is to send your playlists to the media players. Here, the transfer application is loaded to the server, which establishes a connection with each of the target players before delivering the necessary files.

With your clips, playlists, and scheduling information located on the media players, the last step is to send them to your digital signage screens. This task is handled by player software. The application is usually loaded on the media players, which pushes the files according to the schedule received from the main server.

A key function of player software is to record the activity that occurs on the screens it controls. This information is then delivered back to the server. The digital signage network manager can retrieve the data for use in determining why certain clips failed to play, or played out of order.

The software described thus far is essential to most digital signage systems, regardless of whether you are handling everything in-house, or relying upon third-party content streams. If you are sourcing content from third-party streams, you are unlikely to have the server on site. The CMS will normally be accessed through a web browser.

You can also invest in applications that are designed to help you create content in-house, and integrate ad spots within your playlists. The latter piece is valuable if the goal of your DOOH network is to generate revenue through advertising. Realize that neither piece of software is necessary for getting started. For many venue owners with a limited budget, a third-party content solution poses an ideal fit.