It all started with “Nanofabrika”
Entrepreneur Mikhail Andreasen spent several years in event marketing, the creation of different video clips based on their creative Agency “Nanocubic” until you drew attention to the growing segment of digital advertising indoor (digital-indoor) on different screens. By switching to this segment of the market, Andreasen faced with different technological complexities. “In restaurants “Wabi-Sabi”, for example, hang TVs, twist beautiful content and advertising. But in order to change content once a month to every screen send a courier, which changes the stick,” explains Andreasen. This operation, he said, should be done either every TV, or every computer connected to multiple displays. “I immediately realized that the market needs a separate solution designed to centrally and remotely manage the network of screens,” says founder Visiobox.
In the fall of 2013 Andreasen with a group of developers has begun building a cloud platform to manage the screens, having enclosed in it about 1 million rbl. (your savings plus borrowed from friends). The result was a microcomputer designed player with access to the Internet and developed software for remote management screens. The device connects to the cloud and allows the owner to control the screen via your personal account, downloading any content: videos, photos, slides, data about the weather or the exchange rate etc Now each device costs about $100 (about 6.5 thousand rubles), however, since it is enough to install the screen once, in the end it will help the owner to save considerably on management, says Andresen. The control system of disparate screens can cost the owner tens of thousands of dollars, confirmed the CEO of the operator of indoor advertising in business centers Advance Group Maxim Alexandrov. Subscription to a cloud service Visiobox starts from 150 rubles per month.
During the work on the project, which was named Visiobox, partners Andriyashina steel Dmitry Shmakov, founder of service recognition and augmented reality Goodwin, and CEO of pension Fund “Zerich” Sergey Prokopiev. Three in October 2014, they established the company “the development Center” (DMC; Andriyashina — 50%, Prokopyeva and Shmakov, 25%). Investment in the development of devices and software, conduct pilot projects with companies — owners of the screens to date amounted to 25 million rubles.
Cooperation with Andriyashina Shmakov allowed to improve the product Visiobox by adding interactivity. The main problem of the segment of digital-indoor is that the advertiser can see how effective advertising on the screens in the premises, and therefore to understand whether there is any benefit for him to use this channel. New development of the CPD — DNA Visiobox — retrieves statistics of views of indoor-advertising, determine the number of contacts (in the direction of sight).
Solutions Visiobox proved to be popular in 2014 sell cloud solutions to manage the screens brought the company about 18 million rubles In 2015, the company began to collect and sell your own screens with integrated management system. Visiobox tests pharmacy network (“Doctor Stoletov”), HoReCa companies, transportation companies and indoor advertising network (the”Lais Digital” screens at the stations). For the first half of 2015, the company earned 30 million rubles.
“We try to help all owners of the Levitz, said Andreasen. — Of the customers buy product key screens with integrated control technology. Someone buys only the player and connects to your existing screens.” Andreasen hopes that by the end of 2015 with Visiobox will be managed by 5 thousand screens, and by the middle of 2016 — twice.
Figures Visiobox
$108 million — the amount of indoor advertising market in Russia in 2014
$30 million — the market volume digital indoor in 2014
100 thousand screensinstalled indoors in Moscow, can be used for displaying advertising
$100 is a microcomputer-player from Visiobox
25 million rubles — investments in Visiobox
30 million rubles earned Visiobox in the first half of 2015
Sources: ACAR, Visiobox
All over advertising exchange
Visiobox logical development will be the merging of the office of independent networks of screens, says the businessman. “If the existing technology is just the control screens each specific network, the next step is already such automated control of the sale of advertising,” says Andresen. The service will provide a platform for advertisers and network owners screens. The latter will be recorded in the system and inform the necessary parameters: the number of screens, their locations, target audience, cost of airtime and the amount of time per day that they are willing to pay for third-party advertising. On the basis of these data the advertiser can choose the most appropriate options, and one click to send your video to the desired screens. “Let’s say you’re an advertiser, go into your dashboard and set the parameters: the target audience is the suburbs, toy stores. The system calculates the cost, you click OK, the moderator approves the request, and after payment the content flies,” explains Andreasen. To run development and to find investors for the project, in August 2015 Visiobox became the resident of “SKOLKOVO”. “Well they wrote an application and were selected by our experts on the status of the participant from the first that succeeds, probably 15% of the companies”, — said the head of multimedia technologies “SKOLKOVO” Grigoriy Leshchenko.
According to Andriyashina, such a system would allow owners of screens is more profitable to sell airtime and make money on advertising, and advertisers get access to more number of screens in many different locations and regions. “For example, Coca-Cola is not interested to broadcast advertisements in a small network of ten screens. But 10 thousand screens Coca-Cola ready to download advertising, explains co-owner Visiobox Dmitry Shmakov. Accordingly, owners of small networks will be able to receive Federal advertising budgets of large companies, if they are combined into a large virtual indoor-network”. The company intends to continue to make a subscription to an online service management screens, the sale of equipment, and also taking a Commission from the advertising turnover (5-10%) in the proposed virtual network. Visiobox planned revenue for 2016 is $5 million.
THE VIEW FROM THE OUTSIDE
“Business is ready to work with such a platform, if she shows up”
Alexey Nesterenko, President of the Association of advertising In and Out, co-chair of the Committee on outdoor advertising and the press ACAR
Photo: From personal archive
Great idea, but its implementation is extremely complex and will require a lot of effort and investment. The business will be ready to work with such a platform, if it appears. But you will have to sign a huge number of deals with operators and advertisers, to sell its vast number of market players, to make them to believe in this project and has agreed to pay the required Commission. This platform should bring together two markets that are today without her.
The company Visiobox still unknown — in order to speed up the process, they would do well to unite with the Institute or brokers or a large operator of indoor-advertising to gain quick access or to a basket stock, or to big budgets of clients. If you do, then surely it will be a bright project that will change the entire market. Who first realizes it, he will skim the cream.
“I don’t know how to combine all”
Maxim Alexandrov, General Director of the operator of indoor advertising in business centers of Advance Group
Photo: From personal archive
The idea to collect all statements into a single pool on the same site — both in Moscow and regions — good. But there is a problem: receiving “batch sales”, typically used within a single company: for example, when a publishing house is promoting several printed projects, or a radio group allows you to place ads on multiple radio stations. Collect the same operators that run each in its segment and also belong to different business entities, their unique Playground is another. Indoor-market, though small, but we are all each other’s competitors. Everyone is interested that the budget remains in your company and not spread across other. I can’t imagine how can all combine to say: guys, we are now all under one roof, and let the client itself generates the program.
I think the decision Visiobox interested small screen networks: they don’t have sales and this additional income opportunity. In fact, they give their inventory to a third party that will allow to increase their capital. But at regional and smaller clients and budgets much smaller. If Visiobox will not be able to negotiate with the big players, I have no idea how they will survive in the market. The Indoor segment in Russia is not a key site, which means that it is often bought by a residual principle. Exchange can be triggered when the main market players agree among themselves, and will the whole procedure be simplified, but what about this idea today I have a certain skepticism.
“Investors will like this project”
Grigoriy Leshchenko, head of multimedia technologies “SKOLKOVO”
Photo: From personal archive
On Russian and foreign markets, there are companies that offer services for the delivery of video on screens in shops and restaurants. But the solution that could collect all the screens in a single network, no. Aggregator that offers Visiobox, not only to consolidate all the video and will share it. Owners of gas stations can advertise a flower shop around the corner and to more effectively spend advertising time on our screens. Such a mechanism is completely absent today, and meanwhile it would make the life of owners of these small businesses are much better: they would increase and they would get easy, effective way to promote your business not only online but also offline.
Team Visiobox strong, have skills in technology development and promotion. I think with the help of our mentors and partners “SKOLKOVO” they must be pretty successful. The main difficulty is to create the technological base. This is a unique and scalable business, and investors love businesses that have the ability to grow rapidly. I think that investors will like this project: the challenge in the market is there and quite evident, and the company offers to effectively solve this problem.
“Technology is attractive for investments”
Igor Lutz, partner of the Foundation, The Untitled
Photo: Sergei Fadeichev/TASS
Visiobox is not the only project in Russia, offering similar technical solutions segment indoor and outdoor advertising. This suggests that in the future, such technology will be introduced massively. One of the main problems of this advertising inventory in that there are as yet no tools with which the advertiser can adequately assess its effectiveness. All pay for passing traffic, but the tools to accurately measure this traffic and its quality. Visiobox gives the opportunity to assess, because their technology solutions allow us to count how many people walked past the screen, how many of them looked at him (look records), and in the future to produce targeting, discriminating viewers by gender and age.
The technology itself is attractive for investment since it is clear how and what are the imperfections of today’s market she decides. In my opinion, the main difficulties and risks lie not in technology but in business models. The question of how to combine the benefits of technology with the interests of the operators and customers of the market.
“Easy and reliable”
Anton Panteleev, Director of Department of advertising of a network of pharmacies “Doctor Stoletov”
Photo: From personal archive
In late 2014 we began to discuss first drafts with Visiobox, because one of our suppliers was an interesting project “digital shelves” to boost sales. Currently in our pharmacies in Moscow and St. Petersburg has more than 400 screens in the checkout area, and we are interested in, in order to stimulate increased sales of goods. Visiobox offered a convenient and inexpensive content management system with microcomputers players built directly into the screens, simple and affordable cloud-based service for management and cooperation in the search of advertisers. Simply and reliably. We are currently testing a few systems and stick with the one that is optimal for us.
