Reactrix Media Powered by Sprint and Sierra Wireless

“The Reactrix wireless solution is critical in building out our media network,” explained Reactrix’s Michael Harshfield, Sr. Director/VP, Customer Care & Supply Chain. “The Raven-E modems, coupled with AceNet software, allow us to see our installed systems right away; we can monitor, pull interactivity data and communicate with a system to change content immediately – making each system fully operational and able to generate revenue from day one.”

COMPANY OVERVIEW
Reactrix Systems, Inc., headquartered in Redwood City, CA, develops and markets innovative media solutions for advertising, retail, event and entertainment applications appearing in a variety of venues, including malls, movie theaters, office buildings, transportations centers and entertainment complexes. By combining digital image projection and visioning technologies, the company’s media system projects vivid, interactive, branded images that instantly respond to people who walk by or gesture over the display area, creating an immersive media experience that makes floors, walls and tabletops ‘come to life’. Today’s Reactrix Media Network has a monthly reach exceeding 100 million people in the top 25 US markets.

BUSINESS CHALLENGE
High-tech marketing firm Reactrix has technology that allows the company to project 6’ x 8’ advertising images onto the floors of public spaces in 30-second or 45-second increments. Consumers step on the images to interact with the ads, taking actions such as kicking a virtual ball, which then changes direction.

A turnkey Reactrix installation consists of a video projector, processor and visioning unit, mounting frame and a standard 6’ x 8’ display surface. Once installation is complete, advertising content is fed to the projectors and refreshed approximately every four weeks.

Originally relying on DSL or cable for their broadband connections, Reactrix was often forced to wait up to six weeks before installed units were visible on their network. This delay frequently led to a costly and time consuming process where field technicians were required to manually upload content directly to the system. Furthermore, Reactrix was dependent on customers to communicate equipment or content issues, as Reactrix had no way to monitor their systems to prevent downtime and possible loss of advertising revenue.

As their customer base grew, Reactrix began to see interest in their projection systems from suburban locations, where DSL and cable were not yet available. Due to the high cost of satellite service and lack of availability of high-speed landline connections, the best solution was to use affordable and ubiquitous 3G broadband cellular data connectivity.

AirLink SOLUTION
Reactrix needed a simple solution that allowed immediate connection to installed systems to enable content changes on-the-fly. Originally, their wireless solution came in the form of Sierra Wireless’ AirLink Raven Ethernet (Raven-E) intelligent wireless modem coupled with AceNet monitoring and maintenance software used on Sprint’s EV-DO Rev. 0 network.

As an innovative company, Reactrix is always interested in staying ahead of the technology curve. Therefore, as EV-DO Rev. A began to rollout in 2006, they decided to take advantage of the faster data transfer rates offered by the latest 3G technology. To realize these benefits, Reactrix turned to Sierra’s new X Platform networking devices, supporting EV-DO Rev A. The Raven X offers increased processing power and expanded memory and, like the Raven-E, is powered by ALEOS™ embedded intelligence, enabling remote configuration, packet-level diagnostics and network session persistence. The common platform of ALEOS allows a homogeneous use of Raven-E modems with Raven X modems without the need to change any parameters of connected systems.

Sierra brought in Feeney Wireless, a value-added distributor, to help Reactrix increase the efficiency and scalability of their solution. Feeney Wireless offered comprehensive integration support and helped Reactrix configure their solution for optimal efficiency. Feeney also provided Reactrix with coverage boosting accessories, such as antennae and custom cabling, and created kits for maintenance teams to test for coverage and signal strength at projection sites.

While Reactrix’s sensing and projection software are the brains behind their advertising system, it’s Sierra’s embedded operating system, ALEOS – the longstanding industry benchmark for reliable and feature-rich intelligence – that enables the quick deployment and management of the solution. ALEOS simplifies installation, operation and maintenance of any solution and provides the “always-on” and “always-aware” connection management required for unmanned applications. To harness the strength of ALEOS, Reactrix deployed AceNet, Sierra Wireless’ enterprise grade one-to-many monitoring and configuration tool. Tightly integrated with ALEOS, AceNet enables Reactrix to remotely monitor, control and manage each of their AirLink devices, greatly reducing the frequency of service calls.

Reactrix is now equipped with 24/7 monitoring through almost 200 Raven-E and Raven X devices implemented across their nationwide network. With AceNet, all of these modems can be monitored and configured on one worksheet, and instead of reacting to problems after being alerted by their customers, Reactrix can now proactively detect issues and fix them remotely or dispatch a field technician as necessary.

In addition to the simplicity provided by utilizing a single cellular resource instead of multiple regional cable/DSL providers, Reactrix benefits from immediate connection to newly installed systems. By eliminating the wait-time for a DSL or cable provider connection, Reactrix has reduced their solution deployment time from six weeks to just several hours, allowing them to start generating ad revenue right away. All connected projection systems are controlled from a central location, enabling Reactrix to refresh content anywhere on the network from their headquarters.

RESULTS
Reactrix’s wireless solution has provided the quick activation and content management capabilities needed to boost the potency of their media network. And with the demonstrated performance increases in speed and throughput, Reactrix plans to migrate all Raven-E modems to the Raven X platform that supports EV-DO Rev. A. Additionally, the wireless solution offers Reactrix new system monitoring capabilities that allow the company to record important interactivity metrics to use as an ROI sales tool to build their network of advertisers.

The Reactrix Systems solution deployment using AirLink’s Raven X and Raven-E network devices and the AceNet monitoring tool on Sprint’s cellular network produced the following improvements:

• Shortened cycle from installation to revenue-generation, enabling immediate monetization of the site, which translates to approximately $2,000 in increased revenue per installation.

• Eliminated wires, enabling a more portable solution and allowing equipment to easily be deployed for short-term opportunities (i.e., trade shows, special events, etc.). Special event installation costs have been reduced by approximately $1,000 per event (the cost of leasing DSL lines).

• Minimized potential revenue loss from downtime by cutting problem resolution time by 50% through remote monitoring and management capabilities offered by ALEOS embedded technology and AceNet software.

• Decreased cost of installation by eliminating need for landline connection to Reactrix equipment. Historically the most costly and time consuming part of the solution, the installation process has been reduced from weeks to hours and has translated into a cost savings of $2,000 per installation.

• Eliminated a dependency on DSL and cable by leveraging the CDMA nationwide footprint, allowing Reactrix to avoid landline installation costs and increase the size of their potential market to areas where DSL and cable are not available.

• Simplified service provider network with single connectivity provider.

• Improved relationships with customers through proactive system fixes and ability to support quick content changes.

• Provided measurable statistics for Reactrix to use as advertising sales tool.

ABOUT AirLink
AirLink Communications, founded in 1993 and acquired by Sierra Wireless in 2007, delivers award winning wireless data solutions that enable pervasive connectivity to fixed, portable and mobile assets. Its continued industry leadership is based on a proven ability to make wireless data solutions work. Powered by the robust embedded intelligence of ALEOSTM technology, AirLink's multi-tiered product suite is versatile, reliable and broadly certified on major wireless networks throughout North America making AirLink solutions ideal for a vast range of applications. These devices, together with AirLink's comprehensive set of best-in-class tools and utilities, and exceptionally strong working relationships with network operators, integrators and application providers, simplify the deployment and management of complex wireless solutions.

Sprint and Aircell Partner to Provide High Speed Internet While in Flight

Aircell, a Chicago-area company specializing in airborne communications for commercial airlines, and Sprint have partnered to provide high speed internet to airline passengers. A new division of Aircell allows airline passengers to surf the web, e-mail and log into their office network while in flight at a cost similar to ground-based hot spots.

As each commercial airline (such as Virgin or American Airlines) uses Aircell’s service, a Sprint Sierra 5725 air card will be activated for airline staff to download operational and network data on the performance of the Aircell network while the plane is airborne. The Sierra air card also enables Aircell employees to download any software to the Aircell system while the aircraft is parked at the gate.

We secured this win over AT&T and Verizon because of our ability to satisfy Aircell’s stringent technical requirements and to accommodate its bandwidth-intensive corporate applications, procurement and logistics compatibility, and because of our plans to transition to WiMAX.

Sprint Mobile Broadband Card Saves the Deal

Sprint offers the largest national mobile broadband network in the industry, and many customers take advantage of it every day, including Louis Burgh, who owns his own company on the East Coast.

“I was on-site one day with a customer fleshing out an important contract for my company,” Burgh said. “Of course, things had to be changed quite a bit, and we had to revise the contracts based on new conditions for the deal.” The customer's network was crashing at the time, but Burgh was able to download the new contract using his Sprint Mobile Broadband card and save the deal – denying a competitor the opportunity to steal one of his most important clients.

“My Sprint card saved the deal – and our business,” he said. “After we were finished, I used location-based services to find a nice restaurant and celebrate our victory. For once, I have a business tool that isn't all work and no play. It helped us unwind as well, without worrying about where to go or how to find it.”

Instant Access to Customers Helps Real Estate Agent

Lee McClelland works on a team of six real-estate professionals for Prudential Kansas City Realty. A potential buyer was navigating their Web site around 9:30 one night and asked for more information about one of their listings. “We would like to see this house,” the buyer wrote in an e-mail. “Please call ASAP.”

McClelland was home at the time, but he received the e-mail request on his Treo 700. “I received the e-mail within minutes and was able to immediately respond to the customer’s request,” he said. “Did I call you back fast enough?” McClelland asked the woman who answered the phone. McClelland could hear her astounded husband in the background saying, “I just e-mailed the guy two minutes ago.”

The buyer was very impressed with McClelland’s instant response. Not only did the Prudential team sell that customer a house, but they also listed their old house and sold it, too. “I’m constantly in meetings and often can’t step out to take a call, but I can usually respond with a message. It’s increased my productivity tenfold.”

Sprint Saves Student's Grade

The following testimonial is from customer Michael Greiner who was the winner of the Mobile U category in the SprintSpeed stories contest. When the power went out, Michael used his Sprint broadband network card and his Sprint Motorola Q to crank out a final paper and turn it in just before the deadline. But was it enough to get him an ‘A’?

Deadlines and dead lines

Most people have had a teacher like Michael Greiner’s college professor – the type of person who does not allow late homework no matter what the excuse. Well, imagine you’re working on an end-of-semester paper for said professor and the day it’s due, the power and network go down.

This is the exact scenario Michael, a student at Drake University in Iowa, found himself in at semester-end last year. But instead of searching for leniency where he knew he’d find none, Michael just searched for his Sprint Mobile Broadband Card and his Sprint device. “Luckily for me, I was on my laptop when the network went down,” Michael said. “I threw in my Mobile Broadband Card and went right back to work. The paper was due at midnight of that night, so I cranked it into high gear and finished about 11:50 p.m. and e-mailed it straight off.

The next day at class, the professor said only five out of 103 students turned in their papers on time because of the network outage that lasted all night.” Good thing Michael had SprintSpeed at his fingertips, because the 98 students who didn’t get the paper in on time were docked a letter grade. Michael explained that if the Internet is down, his professor expects a paper copy. Or if he’s out of the office, which most professors would be at that time of night, students are required to e-mail him the paper on time.

“I ended up getting an ‘A’ on a paper worth 40 percent of my grade and an ‘A’ in the class thanks to Sprint’s Mobile Broadband Network and a good laptop battery,” Michael said.

Xohm - Access Anytime

INTERNET YOUR WAY
Finally, high-speed wireless Internet on your terms: convenient and flexible. Like the cell phone version of broadband, like Wi-Fi pumped up to the max, Xohm’s WiMAX coverage will cut you loose from today’s access limits to enjoy the Internet anytime you want, on your choice of devices, without long-term contracts.

EASY DOES IT
Get ready to experience how easy the Internet can be. With Xohm wireless broadband, you’ll be able to:

Stream movies
View video
Download music
Share photos
Play games
Chat
E-mail
Web surf
Or whatever you want -- around your home, office or on the go, wherever there’s Xohm coverage -- all on the same single always-there connection.

PAY YOUR WAY
Other services offer wireless Internet, but they usually lock you in with contracts and cancellation fees that keep your experience on their terms. As a Xohm member, you’ll get wireless broadband access on yours:

By the day or by the month
No binding contracts
No cancelation fees
Simple activation and reactivation

START SIMPLE
Getting started with Xohm is a snap: no wires means no service calls, drilling, or digging. Just connect your Xohm access device (modem, card, or USB device), to your computer, activate your Xohm membership, and you’ve got broadband at home or to go.

OPEN CONNECTIONS
Other services make you buy their devices to get access -- we want to leave you to your own devices. We’ll be offering our modems and PC cards to make it easy for you to get started -- but soon, wherever there’s Xohm coverage, you’ll be able to connect with any WiMAX-enabled product -- bought from anybody.

Our partners are preparing a huge and growing selection of top-brand Xohm-ready products:

Laptop and Desktop Computers
Ultra Mobile PCs
Mobile Internet Tablets and devices
Portable Media Players
Watch for these -- plus new kinds of WiMAX-enabled electronics that will open new kinds of Internet experiences. More

BEYOND HOTSPOTS
Sure, you can get wireless broadband from Wi-Fi, but only in small, specific hotspots. We’re building the Xohm network to eventually cover entire metropolitan areas -- imagine: a city-sized hotspot offering the broadband speeds you expect at home or the office whenever you want, even on the go. More

JUST THE BEGINNING
As cool as all this is, we’re working to give Xohm members much more… but for now we can only drop some hints: a member portal, online file storage, location-based services, Google mail, chat and... Okay, that’s enough -- stay tuned for details (or better yet, sign up for updates).

Roadhouse Coach Chooses Sprint and TopGlobal for High Speed Mobile Internet

Roadhouse Coach

Roadhouse Coach operates a fleet of 26 luxury coaches that are leased primarily to entertainers. The 30-year-old company is based in central Texas and has a host of high-profile clients including entertainers and rock stars.

OBJECTIVE
When Roadhouse leased out its first bus in 1976, celebrity ground transportation was in its infancy. Thirty years later, business has changed dramatically. Entertainers who once got to their shows by plane now eschew the hassles of flying and travel first-class on the highway. Luxury benefits like satellite TV are the norm, but mobile Internet access was one thing that Roadhouse didn’t offer. Wi-Fi coverage was only available while parked—generally when the artist was busy doing a show—which didn’t offer much benefit to the client. Roadhouse needed a solution that would work while they were driving. Since the Internet is now used for business as well as pleasure, it became critical for customers to be able to get online while in transit to handle their day-to-day personal and professional matters. Moreover, mobile Internet was an important way for the company to differentiate itself from the competition.

SOLUTION DESCRIPTION
In researching potential wireless Internet options, Roadhouse talked with Dave Lowder, founder of Wireless Highway, the major wireless services provider to the entertainment coach industry. Lowder recommended using a 3G-powered wireless router, which turned out to be a plug-and-play solution. The MobileBridge MB8000 gateway from Top Global interfaces externally with the Sprint Mobile Broadband Network. Inside the coach, the router broadcasts its connectivity to the outside world via a standard Wi-Fi signal, so multiple laptops can access the Internet simultaneously. "In essence, it turns a bus going 65 miles an hour into a wireless hot spot on wheels," says Blake Olson, operations manager for Roadhouse Coach. "You just turn on the Wi-Fi-enabled laptop, search for the MobileBridge SSID, click and connect. And it’s so simple we don’t need a dedicated staff person to support it and there is virtually no downtime. Usually all a driver has to do is unplug the router and plug it back in if there is a problem."

SYNOPSIS

www.roadhousecoach.com

COMPANY
• Roadhouse Coach operates a fleet of 26 luxury coaches that are leased primarily to entertainers. The 30-year-old company is based in central Texas and has a host of high-profile clients including entertainers and rock stars.

OBJECTIVE
• Satisfy customer demands for Internet access on the road
• Create a point of differentiation for the company

SOLUTION
• Sprint Mobile Broadband (EV-DO Rev. A)
• Top Global MobileBridge MB8000 wireless routers
• Wireless Highway wireless services provider

RESULTS
• Received strong returns on less than a $1,000 capital investment per coach
• Increased both repeat business and new client acquisition