Our take:Muvico wanted to develop a menu solution that not only matched the "wow" factor of their facility, but one that could tie into their Point-of-Sales (POS) system allowing them to control pricing and promotions throughout the enterprise.
Muvico's challenge was to develop a menu board system that had just the right visual appeal, while also having the technical sophistication to incorporate the features they required and allow for company wide scalability.
Hammond Communications Group and strategic partner Schult Industries, created a solution that utilized three 42" LCD for digital menu boards and one 50" Plasma to deliver a multi-zone layout of messaging for the Appetite Appeal. Driven from dynamic sources, a single media player displays menu items, combos, animated specials and pricing for all concession items.
Working with Radiant Technologies, makers of the POS software used by Muvico, Hammond was able to create a custom application that mines data from their POS system to drive pricing and menu items based on real-time inventory levels and promotional strategies.
In addition, the local manager is given control to promote Appetite Appeal as needed. Changes to the content are provided by Hammond Communications and distributed throughout the network.
Truly beneficial uses for data-driven content for digital signage continues to evade most integrators, but Muvico's installation bucks that trend. Their use of real-time data is innovative in the theater sector, and may prove important in driving the high-margin food items that helps keep these chains in business. Also critical in these types of installations was the ability to provide additional, customized changes on a per-location basis. Leaving theater managers with the ability to customize the messaging (presumably based on demand, local conditions, etc.) is an interesting double-edged sword, as it allows them to maximize the value of the network as appropriate, but will probably introduce more human errors and need for technical support.
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