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Convergent and BrightSign Introduce °SafeStore Screen Control

CMMA Blog

Ballard Interactive 150x150 1

Fully managed solution that enables touchless interaction with in-store large-screen displays using a viewer’s personal smartphone, reducing potential contact exposure to COVID-19

Alpharetta, GA – June 9, 2020 – Convergent Media Systems Corporation, a Ballantyne Strong, Inc. (NYSE American: BTN) company and award-winning leader in delivering digital signage experiences (“Convergent”), has teamed up with BrightSign LLC®, the global market leader in digital signage media players, to offer an integrated solution that delivers interactive digital signage experiences using the viewer’s phone to control content on a digital sign. This solution allows retailers, banks and other businesses to enable viewers to navigate and access information on a large digital display without touching it – thereby reducing potential exposure to COVID-19. 

°SafeStore Screen Control is a turnkey solution, complete with all the hardware, software and services necessary, including installation, support and maintenance for quick deployment and reliable operation at scale. 

“Retailers, banks and other enterprises had been investing in large-screen touch interactive experiences long before COVID-19,” said John Campbell, President of Convergent. “°SafeStore Screen Control now delivers touchless engagement without the need for contact with frequently touched surfaces or touchscreens.”

“This solution exemplifies how AV integrators can leverage our technology to create innovative digital signage solutions,” said Jeff Hastings, CEO of BrightSign. “This capability gives businesses a quick, cost-effective way to provide interactive experiences without the need to replace expensive touchscreen displays and lets partners like Convergent deliver greater value by providing sophisticated integration and content development services.”

“°SafeStore Screen Control also lets businesses leverage the viewers’ phones for advanced functionality, like registering for events, downloading and saving product information, and calling, texting and sharing via social media,” explained Greg Davis, SVP Sales & Marketing at Convergent. “This opens up a wide range of marketing opportunities for businesses to engage with their customers in new ways that enhance the omnichannel experience.”

°SafeStore Screen Control offers the following benefits:

Widely Accessible

Works with iOS or Android phones utilizing phone’s web browser, so no need to download an app.

Easy to Use

User simply joins WiFi and launches web browser, and user interface appears on the viewer’s phone.

Innovative

Wide range of programming options to handle almost any controller/display content scenario, including use of the phone’s calling, texting, sharing and file downloading capabilities.

Flexible

Use new or existing displays of almost any size, make or model.

  • Choose displays that best suit your budget and store environment
  • Various display mounting options (wall, pole, ceiling)
  • The user interface on the phone and the content on the display can be updated remotely

“Convergent brings over 35 years of AV engineering and creative expertise to the development of innovative solutions like our °SafeStore suite of products” said Campbell. “Our commitment is to deliver engaging digital experiences that combine function, scale and reliability.”

For more information on this and other °SafeStore products, visit www.convergent.com/safestore  or call (770) 369-9000.

About Convergent
Convergent Media Systems Corporation, a Ballantyne Strong, Inc. company, is changing expectations about how to create and manage digital signage experiences. With over 35 years of innovation, we challenge clients to think differently about how they engage with their customers and employees and the technology they use to do it. Clients rely on us to eliminate complexity by integrating and managing best of breed technologies into single source solutions. And our award-winning creative captivates, engages and motivates buyers. Today our digital experiences reach thousands of locations around the world and are seen by millions of people each day. More information is available at www.convergent.com .

About BrightSign

BrightSign LLC, the global market leader in digital signage media players, is headquartered in Los Gatos, California, with offices in Europe and Asia. BrightSign manufactures media players and provides free software and networking solutions for the commercial digital signage market worldwide, serving all vertical segments of the digital signage marketplace. From entry-level BrightSign LS players to BrightSign XT players offering state-of-the-art technology and unsurpassed performance, BrightSign’s products are known for their signature reliability, affordability, ease-of-use, and market-leading technology. For more information, visit www.brightsign.biz . Follow BrightSign at https://twitter.com/brightsign  and https://www.facebook.com/BrightSignLLC .

About Ballantyne Strong, Inc.

Ballantyne Strong, Inc. (www.ballantynestrong.com ) and its subsidiaries engage in diverse business activities including the design, integration and installation of technology solutions for a broad range of applications; development and delivery of out-of-home messaging, advertising and communications; manufacturing of projection screens; and providing managed services including monitoring of networked equipment. The Company focuses on serving the entertainment, retail and advertising markets.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may include forward-looking statements, such as our expectations regarding future sales, the impact, length and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the adequacy of the actions taken in response to the pandemic, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to those discussed in the “Risk Factors” section contained in Item 1A in Ballantyne Strong, Inc.’s  Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, the Company’s subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the following risks and uncertainties: the Company’s ability to maintain and expand its revenue streams, potential interruptions of supplier relationships or higher prices charged by suppliers, the Company’s ability to successfully compete and introduce enhancements and new features that achieve market acceptance and that keep pace with technological developments, the Company’s access to capital, the Company’s ability to successfully execute its capital allocation strategy, the Company’s ability to maintain its brand and reputation and retain or replace its significant customers, the impact of a challenging global economic environment or a downturn in the markets (such as the current economic disruption and market volatility generated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic), economic and political risks of selling products in foreign countries (including tariffs), risks of non-compliance with U.S. and foreign laws and regulations, potential sales tax collections and claims for uncollected amounts, cybersecurity risks and risks of damage and interruptions of information technology systems, the Company’s ability to retain key members of management and successfully integrate new executives, the Company’s ability to complete acquisitions, strategic investments, entry into new lines of business, divestitures, mergers or other transactions on acceptable terms or at all, the Company’s ability to utilize or assert its intellectual property rights, the impact of natural disasters and other catastrophic events (such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic), the adequacy of insurance and the impact of having a controlling stockholder. Given the risks and uncertainties, readers should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statement and should recognize that the statements are predictions of future results which may not occur as anticipated. Many of the risks listed above have been, and may be further be, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, its impact on the cinema and entertainment industry, and the worsening economic environment. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements and from historical results, due to the risks and uncertainties described herein, as well as others not now anticipated. New risk factors emerge from time to time and it is not possible for management to predict all such risk factors, nor can it assess the impact of all such factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Except where required by law, the Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results or changes in factors or assumptions affecting such forward-looking statements.

Media Contact

Greg Davis
Convergent Media Systems
(770) 369-9071
greg.davis@convergent.com

Investor Relations Contact

Mark Roberson
Ballantyne Strong, Inc.
(704) 994-8279
IR@Btn-inc.com

The post Convergent and BrightSign Introduce °SafeStore Screen Control appeared first on Blog by Convergent .

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Quantum’s VirtualQ | NAB – Take Your Content in Bold New Directions

CMMA Blog

First of all, we at Quantum want to say we miss interacting with you personally, whether providing demos , tours, direct access with our executives at our Executive Briefing Center in our Englewood CO office, visiting onsite to understand your environment and challenges first-hand, or simply having really good conversations during any of the events we both attend, we are all adjusting to new ways. With that said, we are still conducting all these customer-focused activities, but more creatively, virtually. 

And to underscore the core aspect, which hasn’t changed over these recent times of adjustment, is our commitment to our customers and finding new means to continue our interaction, and solving the challenges to keep your production rolling along. 

We might not have made our annual trip to Vegas this year for NAB to sit across from each other at the same table to talk about what’s new, but we can still have meaningful conversations and learning forums face-to-face, virtually that is!

Beginning next Tuesday, May 12 – 14, we are thrilled to welcome you back to the Quantum booth, specifically to our VirtualQ | N AB !

As always, Quantum executives and business leaders will be participating in break-out customer meetings to have personal roundtable discussions. We’ll also be showcasing many of our advanced technologies with product updates and an impressive lineup of leading technology Partners whose time-relevant solutions work seamlessly with StorNext ® environments. Listed below are the sessions where you can join from the comfort of your own home office to hear directly from these Quantum Technology Alliances Partners on how they are providing innovative methods to keep your workflows in motion in our “new normal” world.

  • Adobe Premier Productions with StorNext
    • Learn more about Adobe Premiere Pro as we highlight its new Productions feature and the ways to configure StorNext to get the most out of this new capability.
  • Orchestrated Media Solutions with Dalet and StorNext
    • Find out how Dalet’s solutions provide access across tiered-storage systems along with transparent Archive content access for quicker restores and faster time-to-air.
  • Remote Collaborative Production with IPV and StorNext
    • Hear how IPV helps efficiently manage today’s fast-moving collaborative media workflows and creative projects for today’s distributed workstation environments.
  • Options and Considerations for Effective Remote Production with Teradici and StorNext
    • Discover how Teradici enables work from home needs with remote technology to create secure virtual workspaces handling even the most graphics-intensive applications.

If you would like to learn more about these solutions and how they can help keep your production environment in motion, please visit our VirtualQ | NAB Event web page to check out our event agenda and register for the sessions that interest you. Also, if you would like to connect directly with Quantum executives, product leadership, and engineering experts, please let us know , and we’ll be happy to arrange a meeting with you. See you virtually next weekat VirtualQ | NAB!

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StorNext: A Product with History

CMMA Blog

I’ve got a 1999 Subaru Forester.  I love that car, probably a little too much.  Last year one of my friends bought a 2019 Forester.  My first experience with that thing was eye-opening, let me tell you.  It was like getting a ride in an alien spaceship.  The 2019 is bigger, heavier, packed to the gills with technology (and airbags), and yet gets better gas mileage than mine ever did.  The words “Subaru Forester” now conjure a different picture in my head.

Like these two cars, people think of different things when they think of StorNext , depending on how recent their experience is.  StorNext’s beginnings go back to the late 1990s, an eternity in the software world.  There are good things and bad things about a software product with such a long history.

The good things include stability and safety (much like an AWD car), name recognition and respect in the marketplace, and a raft of patents.  Most importantly, it means we’ve had the privilege and honor of helping thousands of organizations do what they do, better.  You can read about some of them here .

The bad thing about a product with a long history is that many people have a picture in their heads of what it is – or more accurately ‘was’ at some time in the past.  But StorNext never stands still.  Every new release brings new features, new architectural elements, and an embrace of new technology.  I’ve been working with the product since the dawn of this century, and it’s astounding how much it has changed over the years.

Because the change is constant, a key part of our job is to continually educate about what StorNext is today.  We don’t want anyone to think it’s still equipped with a cassette deck and stick shift, after all.  We’ve made a lot of improvements since then!

One element in our educational efforts is a brand-new StorNext whitepaper, which you can download here .  It’s designed for anyone who wants a reasonably technical overview of StorNext’s architecture, features, and capabilities.  The paper is organized into three main sections – the StorNext File System, Clients and Connectivity, and Data Services.  Everything about StorNext falls into one of those categories.  Simple, right?

A key goal with the paper was to keep it simple, without over-simplifying, and I think we’ve achieved that.  For those who wish to dive deeper, they are plenty of pointers to additional information.  If reading patents is your thing, there are even links to a pile of the important patents the StorNext engineering team has earned.  I can assure you there’s no alien technology involved, though if your last experience with StorNext was a few decades ago it will probably seem that there is.

So even if you think you know StorNext – or maybe especially if you think you know StorNext, check out the whitepaper .  It’s bound to change your perspective.

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Business Continuity for the New Normal in IT Environments

CMMA Blog

With a remote workforce, endpoints will generate a lot of data and more IP will be leaving your premises.  Intellectual Property (IP), Financial Data, and Personnel Data are important data sets to be secured. What do you do? Clearly, it’s an open-ended question, but I want to lean in on this topic in the context of implementing security and protecting your data for continued operations in the midst of a crisis with nearly 100% remote workforce as we adjust to a rapidly evolving new normal for managing IT environments.

Maybe your IT organization is like Quantum’s in that you had a head start and prepared to weather this storm because you had previously established a business strategy that allowed your employees to work remotely as part of your normal business operations. If you did not have a head start, it’s understandable and you are now in a reactive mode. Nobody was ready for such a crisis nonetheless, preparedness is key. To deploy a remote workforce that is cost-effective, secure, reliable, and resilient, it takes time to develop and rollout as you prioritize hardware or software requirements within your infrastructure. Here are a few key insights from our own Quantum IT.

Enterprise Applications in the Cloud

At Quantum, every employee is issued a portable computer – either a Windows-based laptop or a MacBook, depending on the needs of the user. We also employ SaaS solutions like Microsoft 365. This provides us collaboration tools like Microsoft Teams and Exchange Online as well as business productivity tools either online or installed on the laptop. In addition, other of our Enterprise applications are SaaS based, meaning they are accessible from anywhere over the internet. Example:  CRM (SalesForce.com). Leveraging the public cloud in this scenario is a good cost-effective solution that enables a remote workforce effective and efficiently.

Protection – Encryption

You’ve heard the saying: “Safety First.” In the digital era the profile of this statement has never been more important than today. It begins with a secured foundation at the server level (normally at the core). If your foundation is weak the rest of your endpoints will probably resemble the same weak structure. Do not take the shortcut, when possible leverage solutions such as:

Data encryption at rest and in transit. In transit, web data should always be sent via https. Also look at the various encryption models: Client-side, Server-side with service-managed keys, Server-side with Customer-managed keys. Also consider using a Key Vault to securely store keys.

Client-side encryption

Client-side encryption is performed outside of Azure. It includes:

  • Data encrypted by an application that is running in the customer’s datacenter or by a service application.
  • Data that is already encrypted when it is received by Azure.

With client-side encryption, cloud service providers do not have access to the encryption keys and cannot decrypt this data. You maintain complete control of the keys.

Server-Side Encryption

The three server-side encryption models offer different key management characteristics, which you can choose according to your requirements:

  • Service-managed keys: Provides a combination of control and convenience with low overhead.
  • Customer-managed keys: Gives you control over the keys, including Bring Your Own Keys (BYOK) support, or allows you to generate new ones.
  • Service-managed keys in customer-controlled hardware: Enables you to manage keys in your proprietary repository, outside of Microsoft control. This characteristic is called Host Your Own Key (HYOK). However, configuration is complex, and most Azure services do not support this model.

Cybersecurity

 IDC research shows that 93% of organizations have been attacked within the past three years (source: https://dl.acronis.com/u/rc/WP_IDC_Acronis_Cyber_Protection_EN-US_200403.pdf ). It is time to tighten up the integration of data protection, disaster recovery, and data security operations within the cybersecurity strategy and think about backups as part of your cybersecurity approach. Threats from ransomware and other malware are prevalent and there are plenty more threats engineered with AI capabilities to infiltrate your datacenter. Whatever cyber-security software or backup method you choose, (Flash, SSDs, HDD, Tape) or environment (physical, virtual, multi-cloud) or, the goal is to integrate what used to be silos and build a resilient IT operation.

Availability & Resiliency

Because of an enterprise’s global reach, systems and application need to be ready and available 24/7. Backup applications need to be efficient and predictable across multiple platforms. Any threat such as natural, man-made or cyber is disruptive to an IT environment; a resilient system is key to recover quickly and efficiently to withstand unforeseen events and ensure data is secure and available at any moment in time. Employ a backup method that enables the replication to a DR site or cloud provider by employing on-prem, cloud or a hybrid approach to backup. Our current global situation has reset many priorities and all these topics are now top of mind.

VDI

As the threat to businesses continues, a large majority of organizations have turned to VDI to rapidly deploy virtual desktop infrastructures and release a mobile workforce that can be as productive as if they were in the office. Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) is defined as the hosting of desktop environments on a central server. In other words, it’s like having a structured office available on-demand allowing you the ability to access virtual data and applications and you are really just shifting the compute cost from the endpoint to the data center (if on premises) or the cloud. To us, this is a very cost-effective solution that helps keep the data centralized and off endpoints which are more susceptible to data loss. One of the cool things about VDI, is break/fix becomes a lot easier because you can quickly “spin up” a new desktop for a user if their current desktop becomes corrupt. Also makes things like patch management and OS updates easier as it is all centrally managed i.e. lower administrative overhead.

Flexibility

An important part of the equation is flexibility. Whatever strategy you chose that meets your organization’s business goals or in this case, an effective and secured remote workforce for business continuity (BC), your solution should be flexible to adjust as needed to meet the demands of current and future national or global events that can affect your datacenter. This current global crisis is a good example of how quickly organization learned if the were ahead of behind the curve. Technology by itself cannot meet the need alone, it needs a strategy built upon it to mitigate risks associated with ‘crisis’ type events and or simple business continuity.

Data Protection

It has never been more important to back up data on the regular. With Ransomware getting more sophisticated, we need to adapt and build IT environments to expect (and withstand) an attack – there are some strains out there that as far as we know, there are no decryption tools available so you must have alternative methods to recover your data. Let’s remember that criminals are no longer using mass campaigns, instead they are going for remote access – remote desktop protocol was the most used entry vector.

In our new normal, we hope our insight provides some guidance to building, securing and protecting your data, your remote workforce, your network and helps you build solid business continuity plans… no matter what disaster comes your way. Check out our QonQ business continuity webinar here .

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What’s Your Take on Video and Unstructured Data?

CMMA Blog

It’s the age-old challenge for IT organizations and professionals – how to best protect digital content and information to ensure it’s available when needed, and all within budget.

And compounding the pressure to get it right is the accelerating proliferation of data. There are of course different types of data, so knowing which type needs to be architected is a logical starting place. Let’s begin with structured versus unstructured data. 

If you are like the majority of IT users, you are concerned with unstructured data, which is comprised of file and object storage and is expected to grow at an ever-increasing rate.

In fact, IDC’s Worldwide Global DataSphere Forecast, 2019–2023 indicates that content created and replicated related to entertainment continues to be the largest category of data being generated.

This type of data and files are therefore much larger. They are also much harder to search, but also contain more information, and possibly more insight. Conversely, structured data by its very nature is defined and formatted with a specified structure. This makes it easier to store, manage, and search.

So what is driving this sharpening growth curve? It is because of what comprises unstructured data, what makes it up, and its importance in today’s world and our culture. One of the most common types of unstructured data is video and video-like content. And of course, we see all around us, the constant barrage of video content from gaming, social media, box office blowouts, informercials – the list is endless. As examples of industries that are video-content centric, I’m sure what comes quickly to mind includes broadcast, movie and television studios, sports media, animation… the fact is, video surrounds our daily lives from every angle! 

Entertainment generates the majority of content. But consider some other sources of unstructured data that you are likely familiar with, but maybe aren’t top of mind. For example, corporate videos, like those used for trainings, marketing, and teaching. Also within health sciences, video is highly integrated to provide better health care, such as telemedicine, which is widely used today, image-based health records, medical instruction purposes – all of these high-res image files must be secured and available for ongoing access. And one other very important source where video is now ubiquitous is video surveillance, which is leveraged by all industries today running a variety of security workloads.  

These are just a few examples of the digital content that exist, and more importantly, will be created at an accelerated rate. They also provide a good example of the type and size of these files, and why they can’t be stored or protected in the same manner as structured files. This makes it a bit more challenging when architecting and choosing the best information-management infrastructure to handle your specific requirements. 

Efficiently managing all of this digital content and information requires you to think differently about the infrastructure for this big unstructured data. The good news is that this also provides organizations the opportunity to make their infrastructure future-proof with key considerations.

There are long-term advantages to digitally transform your video infrastructure. Understanding of the types of unstructured data that needs to be protected, where it is in its lifecycle, and your organization’s requirements for access to those files allows you to begin this transformation process. There are some additional considerations[1] to factor in your planning:

•             IT projects alignment

•             Cost and efficiency

•             Analytics and governance

•             Mitigating risk

To be best equipped for future-proofing your unstructured data infrastructure and best practices for managing it, the first step is to understand the trends for video and video-like data, the types of files, their usage, and where in the workflow your content is located.

If you’re interested in learning more and understanding these trends and factors, so that you can stay ahead of the digital content tidal wave, we invite you to download for free, the IDC InfoBrief: Storage System Considerations in the Digital Era .  

[1] IDC InfoBrief, sponsored by Quantum, Storage System Considerations in the Digital Era, April, 2020.

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Quantum COVID-19 Bulletin

CMMA Blog

At Quantum, we continue to manage through the COVID-19 pandemic, and as part of providing ongoing communication to our customers and partners, we will be publishing updates on a regular basis going forward. 

Quantum actions implemented and underway:

  • Employee Health and Safety:  The health and safety of our employees have been, and will continue to be our top priority.  We have transitioned to a remote workforce, and only essential personnel have access to our facilities on a need-only basis. While on-site, they are required to follow mandatory safety protocols. 
  • Technical Support:  All Quantum remote technical support and remote system monitoring is business as usual with 24×7 availability using existing processes.
  • On-Site Installation and Support:  As the impact of the pandemic has increased across the world, our ability to deliver services onsite has been impacted.  Depending on the country, the specific location, or the policy of our customers, onsite services at customer locations are being impacted. Quantum is working closely with our customers and partners to minimize business impact while ensuring business continuity.
  • Supply Chain:  As we noted in the press release issued on 6 April, while our supply chain remains intact and operating, we have experienced issues related to our logistics network.  The reduced capacity within and across freight lanes has caused late deliveries. To date, we have experienced minimal impact on product availability, although future capacity constraints across the network due to lost capacity from factory downtime, closures, as well as reduced staff and demand signal fluctuations are expected to impact product availability in the months and possibly quarters to come. We are working closely with our suppliers to ensure forecast requirements are known and are taking steps in an effort to secure material in advance of suspected allocation disruptions. You have our commitment to communicate and coordinate with our customers and partners to minimize any potential impact. 
  • Virtual Events, Executive Briefings, Partner Meetings:  We are working hand-in-hand with our customers to help them both ensure business continuity and drive their business forward as we face this pandemic together.  We are hosting a number of virtual meetings and have many more upcoming virtual sessions planned.
  • COVID-19 Task Force:  We have set up an internal task force to escalate and resolve issues quickly, to answer questions, and to provide any help we can.  You can contact the task force via Covid-19TaskForce@quantum.com.

We’ll continue to provide updates as the situation develops.  Look for announcements in the coming weeks on virtual events, our new virtual executive briefing program, supply chain updates and more. 

Please stay safe and healthy,
Your Quantum Team

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