Between 30 and 40 percent of Scala's customers use its digital signage platform in an advertising-based scenario, says Jeff Porter, the company's executive vice president. Release 4, the latest version of Scala's connected signage software, introduces Ad Manager, which gives advertising pros a new tool to use in campaign planning and management, and adds functionality to the existing parts of the platform (Player, Content Manager, and Designer).

Ad Manager acts as a database, organizing groups of signage locations by demographic, region, or other selected criteria. Take gas stations with digital signage at the pump. Different stations offer different amenities–a car wash, a convenience store–that present various advertising potential. Users can send promotional content to only gas stations in the Mid-Atlantic that sell Coke products, for example. This effectively reduces the number of playlists managed at a time.

The Content Manager can now be reached from any Internet browser or online device. And soon, users may even be able to manage content from their iPhones. "We developed a prototype iPhone App for our partner conference. It lets you pick your template ...type on your iPhone, and push Go," says Porter. New additions to the Designer include a Photoshop plug-in and Flash support.

Release 4 is flexible enough for small businesses or a corporate IT department.

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