Preparing for digital signage 5: Connectivity and bandwidth

18/4/2019

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This article is the fifth in a series concerning the choice of the network architecture of its digital signage system, if you do not fully understand the concept of digital signage, or are not familiar with the various existing architectures, start with this article: Digital signage: be well prepared. If you missed the previous article, check out: Preparing #4: Training and getting started

Digital signage is a communication tool intended to broadcast multimedia content on display screens. This tool is based on a system made up of equipment (player, server, management software...) which, in order to function, must be able to communicate with each other. A stable connection is required. Depending on the content to be broadcast and the frequency with which this content is updated, the quantity of information to be exchanged can be significant. Depending on the infrastructure in place, and the means of connectivity (Ethernet, Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G...) ), bandwidth problems, slow network traffic, or additional costs may occur.

Case of the hosted model

In this architecture, each of the display players must be connected to the corporate local network. The server must also be connected to the same network, as well as the communicant management station. Data exchanges are therefore limited to this local network.. In the event that this local network is also used by company personnel, slowness may appear. Indeed, a communicator who sends long videos on a frequent basis could temporarily saturate the network. Thus, only the internal network infrastructure limits the bandwidth. The service provider (s) providing player, server and software can provide data consumption information that will allow an informed choice to be made. Ensuring the use of local network bandwidth remains the responsibility of the company's technical team.

On the other hand, The system does not consume data from the Internet, so don't use the bandwidth internet and therefore does not require additional billing, for example from a telecommunications operator.

Digital signage cases on a SaaS model

In the case of a SaaS architecture, each player must be connected to the internet. This connection can be made through the company's local network. (For example, the player connects to the company's local network and has shared internet access, as if it were the workstation of an additional employee). In this case, The bandwidth of the local network as well as that of the Internet are consumed. Slowness may then appear, depending on the content sent and the equipment used. If the company has a sufficient Internet subscription, all the workstations and display players can coexist without slowness or additional billing. Some SaaS solutions also offer to manage bandwidth by downloading content. only on certain time slots.

Connecting each player to the Internet can also be done through additional network equipment. This equipment can be a classic internet box, offering wired (Ethernet) or wireless (Wi-Fi) connectivity or even mobile connectivity (3G, 4G...). So each player can connect to the Internet without going through the company's local network. However, this alternative may involve additional costs, such as the purchase or rental of network equipment and subscriptions. internet or Data additional. The costs generated often depend on data consumption and therefore on the equipment and solutions selected, but also on the use of the platform. (streaming video consumes more data than broadcasting an image!).

Case of dynamic screens on a hybrid model

In the case of a hybrid architecture, Some data exchanges take place over the Internet, and therefore consume data as well. These exchanges are in principle less demanding than for a SaaS architecture, since these exchanges only concern a part of the content to be broadcast.

Peeled consumption

The quantity of data consumed by players depends on the use of the communicant. However, in most cases, the media to be broadcast are uploaded to the display players only once. The bandwidth is then only used to download new media, before they are first broadcast. In addition, this makes it possible not to interrupt the broadcast, even in the event of an internet outage. In addition, some solutions offer re-encode the content on the server before sending it to the players. This makes it possible to drastically reduce the size of the files to be transmitted on the network and therefore to limit data consumption (on the Internet and on the local network). Only the broadcast of streamings can be intensive in terms of data consumed. They should be used with full knowledge of the facts.

Thus, all architectures can use bandwidth on the local network and cause delays, depending on the use made by the communicators. Only a SaaS architecture can cause additional subscription costs. internet or Mobile data additional, but some solutions (SaaS) offer optimizations that limit the size and frequency of data, guaranteeing minimum traffic and a reduced bill.

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