Scramble TV is the 3rd generation of digital signage by Vanten K.K., based in Tokyo.
In 2003, Vanten developed the first cloud platform for digital signage in Japan called EngageMedia, a window’s based system that ran on players that were the size of a large desktop system. EngageMedia incorporated the use of rules in content and scheduling. It also allowed for a very flexible data structure to keep track of content meta data at level far beyond the needs of most early signage customers. The mission to be a platform that was like a cross between Oracle and Salesforce was impressive, but unfortunately a bit overwhelming to the many of customers with relatively simple needs and expectations for their signage. Still we were able to achieve many milestones with this platform. The first city wide deployment of DOOH in Japan together with Softbank (2008), the first multi-player game played on a large billboard via mobile phones against other players on the web (2009), the first DOOH media in Japan to use facial recognition to compile aggregate demographic and viewing data, postioned in some of the world’s busiest train stations and logging millions of views per day (2010), the first DOOH billboard to monitor city wide power usage and automatically power down its system if the city power shortage became critical (2011 – in the months after the Japan earthquake / tsunami / nuclear disaster), and many more.
In 2013, Vanten introduced Otegaru net, an Android based player that boasted a complete UX overhaul while still relying on the rock solid content management and delivery infrastructure of the EngageMedia platform. If EngageMedia was Salesforce, Otegaru net was iPad. The challenge was to provide the absolute minimal functionality for a useful signage system that could be used by literally anyone (See video in 1.10). Otegaru net was a hit with customers who couldn’t believe a digital signage system could be this easy to use. Since then Vanten, has continued to add functionality, but often keeping it hidden from the customer or relying on smarter processing on the back end, making sure to maintain that “Even I can do this” appeal that customers love about it.
Ideas for Scramble TV began swirling in 2017, but it wasn’t until the start of 2021 that Vanten put it on the front burner and pushed toward a summer release. The first round of Web3 integration is just the beginning as we are now committed to a full on push toward DeOOH, and open, interoperable communications infrastructure for everyone.