know | Future

There are a number of reports (here, here and here) about the Belgian newspaper De Tijd planning a pilot project of about two hundred subscribers for an electronic handheld newspaper. At A4 size (metric for 8 1/2″ x 11″) devices built by Phillips around MIT MediaLab spinoff E-Ink, will be the largest product of its kind, almost double the size of the pictured Sony Librie, and promises to be the closest experience yet to a real newspaper. Subscribers will be able to update them at special stations or at home over high speed Internet. The paper plans on offering different advertising at different times of day, and though they will not do so for this trial, they have the ability to refresh the content throughout the day. The big difference between this and reading a web based newspaper on your laptop is that E-Ink technology only uses power when changing the screen contents and hence has a very long battery life.

Via Adverlab

Though most cell phones nowadays have GPS capabilities, very few systems beyond some commercial fleet software and the occassional track-your-kids applications have popped up.  The promised land of passerby targeted advertising has so far gone unfullfilled.  Transit TV is bringing location triggered advertising to a bus or train near you.  Though they are currently missing the most important public transit market in the country, NY, they do have a presence in Chicago.  Servers in transit stations refresh the video screens in the buses and trains with video content delivered via the Internet.  GPS receivers in the vehicles can also trigger special content based on location.