The R&D&i project "ADAPTA" pioneers customized advertising in public spaces

The R&D&i project “ADAPTA: Technologies for Digital Content Customization and Interaction", led by Indra, has just reached the end of its first development phase (2012-2014) in Málaga. During this time, the most pioneering solutions in the industry have been implemented, achieving something the market has never seen before: consumer interaction with ad hoc advertising content in public settings. The innovative initiative, completely unique in Spain, has managed to turn technologies traditionally associated with science fiction into a reality.

The aim of the project is to develop and integrate technology solutions for customizing advertising content and delivering it to consumers in a dynamic, non-intrusive way depending on their preferences and needs. This type of content has applications for every communication channel (television, radio, press, the Internet, etc.) and can be adapted for viewing in different public spaces.

Integrating consumers with brands and improving the impact on target audiences, rather than confusing users with a barrage of ads, are the cornerstones of this project whose short-term goal is to encourage the advertising industry to adopt a new business model.

To this end, ADAPTA (www.innterconectaadapta.es) aims to build a system capable of offering advanced multimedia content and interactive services tailored to the interests of different groups. Based on content customization, depending on the consumer group or even the end users themselves, the platform will not only revitalize advertising in general but deliver "made-to-measure" proposals that users can interact with continuously.

The project has a global budget of 5.2 million euros and is part of the ERDF-Interconnecta program, which encourages innovation projects with an international scope. The program is an initiative of the CDTI (Center for Technological Industrial Development, belonging to the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness) and is co-financed through the ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) and the Regional Ministry of Economy, Innovation, Science and Employment of the Government of Andalusia.

Indra is coordinating the initiative as part of a consortium that also includes IT companies, media and telecommunication organizations like Secuoya, Ingenia, Wellness Telecom, Bellow and Tedial, the research center FIDETIA (Foundation for Information Technology Research and Development in Andalusia), and other knowledge centers like the universities of Málaga and Granada and Madrid Polytechnic University.

Innovation at the cutting edge

The principal benefits are the customization of advertising content according to consumers' needs and tastes and consumers' interaction with that content. For example, the project addresses the interactivity aspect through the use of new dynamic digital signage systems and facilitates the "relationship" between users and the advertising content by making it possible to acquire the products and articles instantaneously using mobile technology.

For the same purpose, ADAPTA incorporates business intelligence techniques to identify a set of key characteristics associated with users (preferences, eye movements, mobile devices, etc.) and create specific profiles identified with them, therefore encouraging consumption based on personal tastes and interests. The project also contemplates brand identification thanks to a system that analyzes users' responses and determines their degree of satisfaction with the content shown.

Furthermore, the system obtains real-time information on the impact of different advertising campaigns on a target audience, which means that future campaigns and the sale of advertising content can be planned more efficiently and productively, with benefits for both advertisers and consumers.

The system has a number of other cutting-edge elements, all pioneers in the advertising market. One is "Gualzru", an autonomous mobile unit that uses robotics and social interactivity to attract the user's attention. The robot interacts with potential customers by drawing their attention to specific advertising content and providing all the information required.

Another aspect of ADAPTA is the development of an interactive holographic representation system able to generate 3D advertising content to attract consumers' attention. Thanks to this system, brands will be able to generate a real and much more attractive visual image of their products based on their actual characteristics.

Tests in public spaces

One of the key features of ADAPTA is that it is designed for use in public spaces, allowing content to be customized to consumer tastes and also allowing the target audience or audiences to interact with it in a busy environment with much more potential than private channels. To fulfill this aim, the prototypes will be tested in a number of different settings in Málaga and Seville, such as an airport, train station, shopping mall and the Málaga Technology Park itself.

The choice of these spaces is determined by the actual environment where the tests will be run, the technology for delivering and viewing the content, and the degree of interaction with the end user or intended audience. The settings chosen are also very busy places through which hundreds of people pass, therefore guaranteeing a variety of tastes and audiences as well as the operability and future applications of the project.

Benchmark interactive services

Indra is a benchmark company in the field of interactive service consulting and development thanks to over a decade of experience in the sector, during which time it has led some of the most significant projects currently being undertaken in this area. For example, the technology multinational spearheaded the R&D&i project “ImmersiveTV”, which has made it possible to develop immersive digital content production technologies to enhance viewers' sensation of integration with the scenes on the TV screen in a much more convincing manner than the current 3D techniques.

The company also led the international R&D&i project "SeniorChannel", which consisted in creating an interactive online TV channel for the elderly, allowing this sector of society to enjoy and interact with customized content, share knowledge and experience, and have fun creating their own programs.

Indra, chaired by Javier Monzón, is Spain's number 1 consulting and technology multinational and one of the main multinationals in Europe and Latin America. Innovation and sustainability are the cornerstone of its business, having assigned over €570 million to R&D&I in the last three years, a figure that places it among the top European companies in its sector in terms of investment. With approximate sales of €3,000 M, 61% of its sales revenue is from the international market. It has 42,000 employees and customers in over 138 countries.