For many people interactive branding is still only about the Web.
It’s true that the Internet is full of exciting new possibilities, like viral marketing or the social media channels. But outside the two dimensional web there is a real world full of interactive possibilities.
The creative use of technology and new interfaces are changing the way people can be digitally approached in the physical realm. Intelligent Billboards, Digital Signage or Interactive Catalogs, controlled by gestures or multi-touch systems, are some of the solutions that we are starting to see on the streets, stores and public spaces that are part of our daily routine.
If the Internet was a milestone in the development of Permission Marketing, this new tangible interactivity allows us to go even further. You don’t force people to touch an interactive shop window or play a game at a cinema venue. So the challenge is on for marketers, copywriters and art directors, to create engaging content that people choose to activate. The result is a dynamic dialogue between the consumer and the brand. And this dialogue takes place within the physical world, making it even more remarkable than interacting on the virtual world of the web.
It is exciting to think that we can integrate some of these new tools with what web 2.0 has to offer. Particularly, the power that consumers are developing in defining the terms and conditions by which they want to be approached by brands, which will hopefully grow online and offline.
Imagine, for instance, having an online store’s characteristics in the physical world. Innovative interfaces would allow you to instantly compare items, browse suggested related articles based on datamining and other people’s suggestions. Clients could even write and leave reviews for others. Products and brands risk being more vulnerable, but quality standards would sure go up - and in the end we’d all benefit.
Microsoft Techdays, one of the biggest tech-events in Portugal, is underway at the Lisbon Congress Center from the 11th to the 14th of March. The four-day event is aimed at “IT professionals, programmers and students” in related fields and is expected to draw over 2000 visitors.
YDreams will be on hand with their ubiquitous Magic Book, a yWalk (interactive floor projection) and one of their latest developments yFaces, an augmented reality-based app that manages to positively surprise users everywhere.
YDreamer Pedro Matos will be participating in a key-note speech about Virtual Coast, a prototype developed by the creative technology provider that runs on Microsoft’s Virtual Earth platform, and will be used by IGP (the Portuguese Geographic Institute) to develop a series of next-generation geographical applications. Antão Almada, from YLabs, the company’s R&D unit, will also give a talk about “building support infra-structures and applications for events such as Techdays” tomorrow at 17:15 in Room A7.
Techdays 2008, March 11th - 14th Venue: Lisbon Congress Center (Centro de Congressos de Lisboa) Portugal
At YDreams we have a great team of graphic designers, interface designers, flash designers, industrial designers, web designers and illustrators. That’s a lot of designers, that’s a lot of talent. But we want more, and now we are looking for an interior designer.
As YDreams becomes more and more a deviser and producer of immersive interactive spaces, either for showrooms, stores, fair booths, museums, exhibitions or others, having a full-fledged interior designer among our ranks is now essential. So, creative, open-minded, interested people, just follow this link and tell us why we want you to work with us.
Campus Party Brazil 2008 opened last week expecting 30 thousand visitors. Yesterday, the event closed its doors accounting for an incredible figure of 50 thousand people throttling around YouTube, Flickr, Yahoo!, Intel, CAIXA - Caixa Econômica Federal, Telefónica, Limão, Windows Live, and many other exhibition stands.
Both interactive games were a huge success: the Poupançudos game (CAIXA) had nearly 7,000 players (including the minister of culture Gilberto Gil), and Intel’s game was played by 4,700 people. Our 3 Bluetooth men went around with the Bluetooth appliances in a backpack.
CAIXA - YBillboard and people waiting in line to play Poupançudos game
The 2008 record breaking 28th edition of the FITUR, one of the world’s biggest tourism fairs, took place in Madrid between the 30th of January and 3rd of February. The 170 country strong fair boasts some impressive numbers, with its 879 stands sheltering over 13.000 different exhibitors across 150.000 m2 of exhibition area. Some 9.000 accredited news reporters from 60 different countries and a total of 250.000 participants (150.000 professionals) crowded 12 huge pavilions for 5 days.
YDreams Med was on hand as the interactive installations provider for the Consorcio de Turismo de Madrid stand, the tourism agency for Spain’s capital region.
8 different Magic Books were set up on 42” plasmas while a 4 m wide plasma-wall hosted yLabs’ newest installation - yFaces (yes, the ‘cartoon thing’ used for the first time at Microsoft Innovation Day in Brussels). The application had speech and thought balloons with phrases promoting the region, popping up over people’s heads.
The stand was a huge success, with all the main institutional players being encouraged to explore the yFaces plasma-wall by the stand’s reps. This installation really proved to be their golden baby. Later on in the day more good news with the Consorico de Turismo de Madrid stand taking first prize for FITUR’s “most innovative and functional” space at the venue, and Portugal’s stand the prize for best stand in the countries category.
Check out this short clip (1:39) courtesy of Internet TV station Libertad Digital about the Madrid stand, where YDreams’ magic is featured in the main spotlight.
Just a reminder to all you art aficionados that ARCO 2008 is right around the corner. This year’s edition of the contemporary art fair, starring Brazil as the special guest nation, is underway in Madrid from February 13th - 18th. But take note, it only opens to the general public from the 15th onwards.
The place is huge and covers everything from historical vanguard art to modern masters, contemporary classics and high-tech art using the latest advances and techniques in painting, sculpting, installations, photography, video and new media.
In the past I’ve seen some pretty amazing stuff at ARCO. Last year I remember coming across a Fogscreen projection from the Finnish company that partnered up with us last May for ECSITE Lisbon 2007.
At ARCO, art and new media technologies come together in some really spectacular ways. Overall the ARCO puts on a good show for art and tech aficionados alike - an excellent suggestion for a weekend escapade, I’d say.
Looks like companies are catching onto the idea that people really enjoy interacting with on-screen content and information through simple hand gestures or natural body movements, minus the hassle of mice, keyboards or complicated controllers. It’s all the rage, and many companies are creating products that mimic the experience as recently witnessed at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
We’ve been creating natural interfaces for computing and entertainment experiences that work with gesture-based controls for some time now, only we call it Reality Computing – user interfaces that are natural, intuitive and instinctive. We pretty much made it our guiding principal.
We won’t say we set the trend, but we definitely realized things were headed this way early on in the game.
Video: Reality Computing in action, VIVO Campaign at Cirque du Soleil in Brazil
A brand new 3,300 m2 bookstore, Byblos, opens later today, in Lisbon’s Amoreiras Square. Besides 150.000 books, Byblos offers customers five didactic and recreational based interactive solutions conceived by YDreams.
A yStores Shop Window won’t let you miss the store when walking by on the street. Accessible from the street, this interactive touch sensitive interface enables customers to access Byblos-related content anytime of day or night. Inside Byblos, you’ll find an yMagic Book by the auditorium with the scheduled activities.
A specific area designed for kids includes the yLight - a magic lantern whose light source is used to drop the pieces of a thematic virtual puzzle into place; the yWalk – an interactive walkway representing a virtual garden; and a virtual board game - aTrivial Pursuit’ style board game based on kids’ literature.
Congratulations to all YDreamers involved in this successful project!
YDreams Brazil has took part too, at Limão (
