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Exhibitors ready for first spring Kiosk Show

For its second effort, the Kiosk Show team chose to head down on the map and up on the calendar. As time comes for the Feb. 22-23 Orlando event, exhibitors are ready for attendees from L.L. Bean, Disney World and Speedway SuperAmerica, and dozens more.

February 14, 2005

In the backyard of the Magic Kingdom, NetWorld Alliance - owners of The Kiosk Show (and publishers of this site) - hopes to make a little magic of its own with its second production of the end-market-oriented event.

Planning for the Feb. 22-23 show, which will occur at the Gaylord Palms resort facility in Orlando, began immediately after last October's Kiosk Show in Boston.

Response to that show was so positive, according to organizer and NetWorld senior vice president Greg Swistak, the company decided to make a spring addition to what was until now a fall-only schedule.

"Our end-market strategy really resonates," Swistak said. "We believed making the Show a twice-a-year event made sense."

Since its inception in 2002, The Kiosk Show has focused on providing complete solutions to companies who want to initiate or expand their foray into self-service with kiosks. Exhibitors must either offer such a solution or co-exhibit with a company whose contribution completes one.

For

Attendees and exhibitors will enjoy The Kiosk Show at the beautiful Gaylord Palms resort.

the first time, the Kiosk Show will feature a limited number of products and service providers who offer partial solutions. They will appear in a special area of the show floor and are not expected to co-mingle with end-market attendees in the complete-solution area.

Another addition to The Kiosk Show is a pre-show slate of workshops, in addition to the seminars that will be presented throughout the show.

Workshop topics include A Kiosk Technology Primer, presented by Swistak; Determining the Investment Required to Deploy a Kiosk Program, by Sylvia Berens, vice president, Apunix; and Understanding and Maximizing the Return on Your Kiosk Investment, by Alex Richardson, managing director, Selling Machine Partners.

Seminar presentations include Digital Signage: The Next Big Wave, presented by Brian Slaughter, retail brand manager, Dell; Retail Case Study: Best Buy, by Lee Zukor, Best Buy; and The Role of Emerging Technologies in Retail, by David Meany, Cisco Systems.

We believed making the Show a twice-a-year event made sense. - Greg Swistak, Kiosk Show organizer

Bob Fincher, executive vice president of sales and marketing for NetWorld, will deliver a general session, The State-of-the-Art in Kiosk and Self-Service Solutions. A panel discussion, Putting It Altogether, will round out the second day.

The fall edition of The Kiosk Show will take place in September, in San Francisco.

For more information on the Orlando Show, visit The Kiosk Show Web site.

Exhibitors

Approximately 30 exhibitors have signed up so far for the upcoming Kiosk Show. Here is a partial list of the companies, what they will exhibit and notes they have provided about their attendance.

Apunix
Apunix will feature its line of solutions, with a full suite of kiosk software from content creation to monitoring to management. They will show retail, hospitality and travel, and tourism customer deployments, including the Henry Company kiosk, the BarMedia I-Menu kiosk and Technology Portal's Travel by Touch kiosk.

Corporate Safe Specialists
Corporate Safe Specialists, founded in 1988, is one of the largest suppliers of safes and cash management solutions to the U.S. retail and restaurant communities, including many Fortune 500 companies. At The Kiosk Show, CSS will demonstrate itsself-out solution, a small-footprint kiosk designed for the convenience/specialty/QSR industries. The technology allows integration to the client's POS or back-office application to streamline reporting and inventory control. As a dual-usage product, it offers clients a self-service kiosk and a safe all in one unit. The product tracks all activity with an audit log, which keeps the date, time and video feed for referencing all events. Theis completely customizable, with a unique design that allows for easy integration into existing counter configurations.

Custom Manufacturing Service
Custom Manufacturing Services will introduce its new TKS-2000 kiosk line. Designed principally to ease the burden on human resource departments and to empower their employees, the TKS-2000 provides employees with access to their benefits and 401k programs, to training, to job applications and much more. The TKS-2000's stainless steel free-standing model is designed to be elegant yet durable, sleek yet sturdy and secure yet easily maintained. Its flexible design platform allows for economical customization for a wide range of self-service applications.

D2 Sales
D2 Sales is a kiosk design and manufacturing firm specializing in brand-focused, custom-designed enclosures and environments. Clients include Yahoo!, Burger King and SBC Communications. On exhibit will be the Tree of Knowledge kiosk, Burger King Kids Virtual Fun Center - Gen3, the SBC Trade Show kiosk, D2 stock kiosk and the enclosure of the Alliance Table-Top kiosk.

GestureTek
GestureTek will introduce GestPoint, the core technology powering GestureTek's line of interactive products. GestPoint uses advanced real-time computer vision techniques to isolate and track user's hands, converting simple gestures into direct mouse control in a variety of environments. It allows any screen of any size to be controlled from any distance. Besides numerous public forum installations, GestPoint's stereo analysis and control technology is applicable for retail, kiosks, desktop PCs, corporate presentations, trade shows, education, security, entertainment, fitness and rehabilitation and more.

Info Touch Technologies
In its booth, Info Touch Technologies, developer of the preferred software platform for the delivery of automated services, will showcase Tio, a national brand strategy for its network of self-service bill payment and financial services kiosks. Tio aims to provide nonbanked consumers with a beacon that symbolizes cost effective, fair, secure and convenient access to rudimentary financial services.

KING Products & Solutions
KING will exhibit a new software application for the retail industry, which is based on product promotion/price look-up that includes the ability to interface with the retailer's POS or back-end legacy system to display the latest price information. The application also enables the retailer to show videos on how to use or install the product. Also on display will be the Dual Screen Plynth kiosk with 30" LCD display, which allows for full multimedia advertising, and the Desktop LINK kiosk with an enhanced way-finding software application that provides animated pathways to the requested destination with directory information.

The Kiosk Factory
Taking advantage of its manufacturing experience and purchasing power, The Kiosk Factory is entering the low-cost market with the introduction of a full-feature kiosk at a modest price. The MinMod is a compact, modular low-cost kiosk with high-end features such as IR touch. Also on display: A ruggedized plant floor database and drawing access kiosk with nine megapixel monitor.

Max International
Print mechanism media manufacturer, MAX International, will display products for applications such as ticketing, vouchers, coupons, ATMs and receipt verification. The company will feature new two-color direct thermal paper. This product is ideal for direct-to-customer target messaging and revenue-streaming opportunities.

Mythology Tech Express (MTE)
Featured at the booth will be the Scorpio photo kiosk, Libra mini kiosk and new Poseidon modular kiosk. The Scorpio, debuted at last fall's Kiosk Show, features a powerful computer in an attractive and space-saving design. The Libra mini kiosk is now available with a multi-media reader module, making it a very small and affordable photo kiosk option. Poseidon is a modular tower system featuring a great-looking design and a high level of versatility.

Nanonation
The developer of customized software will demonstrate several retail solutions, including those for current clients Mazda and Petro. Also look for a general retail, the new Nanonation E3 and possibly an RFID solution.

Nanoptix
Global provider of thermal direct printers, Nanoptix works with strategic partners to provide solutions by either adapting an existing product from their family of printers or by developing a custom printer for specific requirements in the gaming, lottery, kiosk and POS markets. Their area of expertise is "transactional peripherals." At the Show, they will introduce their new EZ tear series of printers, featuring a compact, flexible modular design for kiosks and ATMs.

Electronic Systems Protection
Power protection manufacturer will display the Digitial QC Power Filter, a single unit that provides both power protection and power filtering. ESP power filters are designed to protect sensitive kiosk equipment from surges, ground noise, lightening and other harmful transients. This can help boost reliability and lead to increased revenue and profitability.

Rhombus
Now offering a full installation package which includes logistics, telecom, data cabling, electrical and satellite, the Rhombus Group will exhibit a nationwide network of kiosk maintenance, installation and service technicians. The company makes use of local technicians managed through the process of Six Sigma.

Solara Technologies
Solara will display a mock vending/kiosk enclosure made of clear acrylic. The unique cabinet allows booth visitors a total view of the turnkey hardware and software package while it's demonstrated. The company appeals to manufacturers of kiosks and vending machines who wish to add a comprehensive, ready to go, intelligent package to their enclosures.

Star Micronics
The printer manufacturer will exhibit its extensive line of kiosk printers, including adjustable width and 2", 3" and 4" thermal kiosk printers, used for numerous applications such as airline e-ticket/boarding passes, ATMs, bus/rail tickets, gift registries, Internet access terminals, lottery/gaming and maps/direction kiosks. The company is working to develop new printer models to reflect the increased adoption of kiosk applications.

TAP Services
Touching over 35,000 units around the world annually, TAP's field service force of over 6,000 technicians, installs and services kiosks, networks and Wi-Fi. Founded in 1986 as a PC manufacturer, the company maintains a diverse and loyal client base by providing reliable service using innovative technological solutions. It provides OC12 Internet connectivity through which TAP's Network Operating Center provides Web-based services including remote monitoring and online service reporting.

TELPAR
The printer manufacturer will feature the MTP-2283i, MTP-1530, MTP-2200 series, C-56 thermal receipt printer; Epson EUT-400 series, 500 series and 300 series and others. TELPAR is known for its design, manufacture and support of thermal and impact printers for kiosk applications, medical monitoring, industrial instrumentation and gaming applications. It also markets mechanisms, stand-alone printer products and data capture solutions in addition to offering total printing solutions for customer applications.

WireSpring Technologies
On exhibit will be FireCast OS, software for digital signs and kiosks; FireCast ClientCenter, a remote management, ad scheduling and monitoring suite; FireCast Media Appliance, industrial media player hardware, and a turnkey solution with FireCast OS and Media Appliance integrated into kiosk hardware from White Mountain Solutions. Also see the FireCast OS DME release, offering new levels of flexibility for creating digital signage networks.

WiseVillage
WiseVillage will exhibit its WiseNav spatial navigation kiosk interface and management software, which brings the vibrancy, familiarity and intuitiveness of the physical world to kiosks. Also featured will be information about the WiseStation virtual business center kiosk solutions. The company will launch its new WiseStation Grand and WiseStation Concierge models for the hotel and casino industries.

XAC Automation
As an emerging company in the transaction automation industry, XAC provides building blocks for system solutions. XAC supports its customers with products via total quality assurance of zero-defect concept and ISO 9001 implementation. On exhibit will be, among other products, the company's reader module, magnetic stripe card reader, smart card reader and thermal printer mechanism.

[Editor's note: Info Touch Technologies became Tio Networks in April 2006.]