Screenly announces a follow-up to its popular digital signage solution

• Screenly’s platform has grown to run over 10,000 screens in less than four years
• Making it the largest commercial deployment of Raspberry Pi for digital signage
• Enables rich content in-store screens to be flexible media platform
• Screenly 2 has been rebuilt from scratch with Ubuntu Core to bring more and easier to use features with enhanced security

London, UK, 22 February 2017 – Screenly today announces Screenly 2, a new version of its digital signage solution. The new version is currently being tested by selected customers and will be available in Q2’17. It will be demoed on the Ubuntu Booth (Hall P3 – 3K31) at Mobile World Congress 2017.

Screenly 2 builds on the vision of the original, making interactive digital signage easy to use and accessible to organisations of all sizes. In four years, this simple concept has enabled Screenly to grow and cover over 10,000 screens in a wide variety of environments, from cinemas, to supermarkets and offices, all across the globe.

Building on the Raspberry Pi’s position as the leading IoT platform, Screenly 2 brings even more interactivity through interactions between the screen and its environment. This responds to the increasing demand for more interactivity, bringing a high level of programmatic capability to the digital signage market. Digital signage is an important segment in driving IoT growth, and is set to exceed $23bn by 2023 (source: Global Market Insights 2017).

Screenly 2 also addresses usability and simplicity of installation. Rebuilt from scratch using Canonical’s IoT OS Ubuntu Core and Raspberry Pi 3, any user can get going in minutes by plugging the device into virtually any modern screen. The combination gives excellent price and performance. It is capable of displaying flawless 1080p HD video, web content, public messages and point of sale materials.

Core improvements include:

• Syncs faster with updates from your Screenly account, allowing for new content to be deployed rapidly
• Improved web playback with hardware acceleration
• Enhanced security
• Simplified network requirements
• Up to 50% faster boot times
• IoT Integration into EVRYTHNG’s API, which enables Screenly to react to real-world input, such as sensors and buttons.

Viktor Petersson, Founder of Screenly: “Our initial vision with Screenly was to create a cost effective, set-and-forget, digital signage solution. In Screenly 2, we are taking this to the next level and have incorporated feedback from our community ’ These improvements range from simplified setup to the ability to create more interactive displays that really push the digital signage experience forward. Great digital signage should be more than just a static screen, it should integrate with the world around it.”

Mike Bell, EVP Devices and IoT, Canonical: “Screenly has managed to combine the flexibility of the Raspberry Pi and Ubuntu Core to break new grounds in the digital signage market. Their vision to create simple yet powerful IoT screens is paying dividends. Now organisations from a small single site shop to a multi-tenant shopping center, can dynamically update point of sale information and create new experiences simply, quickly and securely.”

Mobile World Congress 2017 location and EVRYTHNG demo:
Screenly, Ubuntu and EVRYTHNG have teamed up to create a bespoke demonstration for MWC 2017 showing the flexibility and scalability of the platform. To see it visit the Ubuntu Booth in Hall P3 – 3K31 at Mobile World Congress.

The retail-focused demo will show how screens paired with in-store products can act as data triggers to create a more relevant and interactive display.

“We’re excited to be working with technology innovators like Screenly and Canonical,” said Dominique Guinard, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of EVRYTHNG. “Thanks to this collaboration, we’re able to further demonstrate how #BornDigital products can deliver applications and experiences throughout their lifecycle. By giving them a digital life, physical products can impact the real world, controlling screens though the web to deliver personalized content and transform the in-store experience.”

About Screenly
Screenly are the makers of the world’s most popular digital signage solution for the Raspberry Pi, first launched in 2014 and now powering over 10,000 screens around the globe. Screenly is used to manage screens in a large variety of environments, ranging from retail stores, to offices and public spaces.

For more information about Screenly, please visit www.screenly.io

About Canonical
Canonical is the company behind Ubuntu, the leading OS for cloud operations. Most public cloud workloads use Ubuntu, as do most new smart gateways, switches, self-driving cars and advanced robots. Canonical provides enterprise support and services for commercial users of Ubuntu.

Established in 2004, Canonical is a privately held company.

For further information please visit www.ubuntu.com/

About EVRYTHNG
EVRYTHNG is the Internet of Things Smart Products Platform connecting consumer products to the Web, and managing real-time data to drive applications. The world’s leading consumer product manufacturers work with EVRYTHNG to manage billions of intelligent online identities in the cloud for their products, deliver real-time interactive experiences and support services to consumers, and connect with the ecosystem of other applications and products in their digital lives. To find out more about how EVRYTHNG’s award-winning IoT cloud platform delivers better consumer-product experiences and smarter product operations, please visit evrythng.com and follow @EVRYTHNG.