Wellington firm to install screen advertising system in 1000 American gyms

Wellington interactive advertising company Eyemagnet will install internet-connected televisions in more than 1000 fitness centres operated by Snap Fitness in the United States through a joint venture.

At least two-thirds of the space on the screens will be used to show television broadcasts – mostly sports-related – to gym patrons.

The remaining space will be used to display context-sensitive advertising, downloaded over the internet and managed using Eyemagnet's content management system.

General manager Nick Ratcliffe says Eyemagnet and Snap Fitness will split the cost of buying and installing the equipment and the advertising revenues equally. Snap Fitness will provide the venue for the screens, while Eyemagnet will provide its technology.

The joint venture, Eyemagnet Media, represents an investment of more than $1m for the company – its largest international deal, he says. Eyemagnet Media's first advertiser is a large beverage company.

Mr Ratcliffe says Eyemagnet has installed TV projectors and rear-projection screens in four Nike stores in Canada under a separate deal. The screens were used to show the latest Canadian successes in the Winter Olympics and were retained for the Winter Paralympics, which ended yesterday. It was possible Nike's use of Eyemagnet's technology might be extended and expanded to other stores.

Eyemagnet's intellectual property lies in the software it has developed to manage the distribution of video-content to screens, and the tools it has developed to show context-sensitive advertising, he says.

The company won a deal in 2007 to provide its technology to Brazilian bus company Caio Industries, which had planned to install interactive displays in 5500 bio-diesel buses, connected over WiFi and cellphone networks.

Mr Ratcliffe says that as Eyemagnet licensed its technology in Brazil, it does not know how many buses have been kitted out. The roll-out had been slower than expected, but Eyemagnet had picked up contracts with bus companies in other cities and its Brazilian venture was now profitable. "It has taken some time, but everyone is aware of that [possibility] when they move into a developing market."

Eyemagnet employs eight staff in Wellington, four in San Francisco and another six technical support staff in Brazil. The price of flat panel displays and projectors was falling, as was the price of small form factor personal computers used to stream video, making its systems more affordable, Mr Ratcliffe said.

- © Fairfax NZ News