Broadcasting HD Content In-store with one of the Biggest Names in UK Retail
Background
Comet is one of the best known names in UK electronics retailing. Part of the pan-European KESA Group, Comet have over 250 stores across the UK. Comet offers it’s customers a unique, all round, shopping experience, it’s focus being on giving customers the best price, the best choice and the best service on the market. Founded in 1933 by George Hollingbery in Hull, Comet quickly became the pioneer of out-of-town electrical retailing, with the first Comet superstore opening in Hull in 1968.
Now in its 75th year Comet continues to be recognized as one of the biggest names in electrical retailing in the UK.
The Requirement
Comet first started talking to DMP about our products in 2005. Needing to keep up with the growing trend for High Definition television screens, and wanting their customers to experience the full picture quality of HD in store, Comet required a cost effective and easy to deploy solution to broadcast HD content on screens. One of the key issues Comet wanted to avoid was the cost involved in re-cabling all of it’s stores to enable the distribution of HD material. The cost involved in having to re-cable a store can run into many thousands of pounds, making the proposition of broadcasting HD content in-store a difficult one in terms of cost effectiveness.
The Solution
Digital Media Projects consulted with Comet on the issues they were facing and developed a retail specific product which would overcome their problems. The unique and market leading product developed meant that all that was required to broadcast HD content to screens was one ‘head-end’ HD Media Server Unit and the existing coaxial network already present in Comet’s stores.
The solution designed by Digital Media Projects included the following features:
- Transmission of HD Content over the existing coaxial network in Comet’s stores
- Multiple channels of Standard Definition and High Definition advertising
- Remote control of dynamic advertising content easily up-datable from a single end point
- Custom channels available from integrated EPG interface
The Outcome
Whilst the roll out of the HD Media Server is still in it’s initial stages the immediate impact that the technology has made in-stores is tremendous. Comet now have a HD television display second to none in the UK and boasts:
- Stunning HD visual content to display the quality of the television screens in store dramatically improving Comet customers in-store experience
- No signal loss across the screens, meaning customers can experience what all sets picture quality is really like
- Dramatically reduced cost of re-cabling a store saving Comet many thousands of pounds per retail outlet
- Seamless integration with existing digital freeview transmissions
For more information on this or any other project please contact us