EK3 makes Wal-Mart Canada deal official
October 4, 2007 by Dave Haynes
The press release doesn’t seem to have very wide distribution, but London, Ontario-based EK3 has formally announced it bagged the ShopCast deal.
This from Digital Signage Today:
EK3 Technologies Inc. announced that its subsidiary company ShopCast has signed an exclusive agreement to install EK3 digital merchandising solutions in Wal-Mart Canada stores. Under the agreement, EK3 and ShopCast will install the narrowcasting system in 60 stores by the end of 2007 and eventually in all Wal-Mart Canada locations.
EK3 recently purchased ShopCast, a Toronto-based company that offers advertisers strategic media purchasing power on digital networks.
“Partnering with EK3 and ShopCast will enable us to strategically reach out to Wal-Mart customers in-store to inform, entertain and help save them money,” said Mike Dombrow, director of marketing for Wal-Mart Canada Corp. “When we began discussions with EK3, we quickly became excited about the potential of this partnership. Their products are strategically designed to help our business in many ways while delivering the highest quality video to our customers throughout our stores.”
There’s a bit of spin going on there, since ShopCast had the Wal-Mart deal inked more than a year ago and EK3 essentially bought the contract a few weeks ago. But the real story is that this will be the largest retail rollout in the country once completed, with about 20 screens per store and some 350 stores coast to coast.
The plan is (or was) for roughly 10 screens tiled across the checkout areas and then another 8-10 screens zoned by department or department zone. The content is all full screen (hallelujah!), the loop is tight, and the there are more Wal-Mart spots than third-party ads.
There’s some good thinking (based on hard-won learning) so it will be fascinating to see and read how this plays with consumers and with the brand advertiser community. It’s important that it does well, as a lot of retailers up here (and probably further afield) will likely be watching this and factoring it in to their own go-no go decisions around networks.
[…] David Haynes qui suit le dossier depuis un certain temps, le plan comprendrait une dizaine (10) d’écrans […]
Lots of EK3 hype everywhere about Wal-Mart. Whatever they paid for ShopCast has to have certainly paid off, as I have yet to see such an underdog compnay take so much credit for something they have not accomplished themselves.