We’re live at the Cross Roads of the World! Today, ESI Design launched a new sign at 1 Times Square that enables partners News Corporation and Sony, as well as third-party advertisers, to break through the noise of Times Square and engage visitors in dynamic new ways.
 
In addition to showing rich video content, such as movie trailers, sport events, newscasts and commercials, the sign invites users to submit their responses to poll questions via text messaging. The responses come together to create a collective, dynamic real-time data visualization of the thoughts, feelings and opinions of the visitors in Times Square. This sign creates a highly-interactive media experience for all of those who pass by and contains features that are both iconic and unique among other signs within the area. Send in a text the next time you’re in the Square!
 
Along with the interactive features, ESI created the media master plan for the sign, including the branding motion graphics for News Corporation and its divisions, as well as the flexible set of template layouts for supporting a wide variety of video from the many parties using the sign. We partnered with NY-based interaction and media technology firm Audio, Video & Controls, Inc to create a range of custom software for both the public-facing and backend features of the sign.
 
Today’s launch events included a polling question by local news channel Fox 5 asking “Where will LeBron James go?” and a media event for the New York Knicks on Military Island with corresponding video on the sign.

Coming in late August, the sign will ask open-ended questions to elicit free-form responses, and allow visitors to post their photos directly to the sign.