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A Video Ad, In a Paper Magazine

Posted by timothy on from the who'dathunkit dept.

lee1 writes "The first-ever video advertisement will be published in a traditional paper magazine — Entertainment Weekly — in September. The video will be displayed on slim-line screens around the size of a mobile phone display and will have rechargeable batteries. The associated chip can hold up to 40 minutes of video, and uses technology similar to that used in singing greeting cards, playing the movie when the page is turned. The first clips will preview CBS shows and advertise Pepsi, but they will only be distributed in Los Angeles and New York. Imagine the fun hacking possibilities."

5 of 295 comments (clear)

  1. Re:fun hacking? Er..no. Imagine the annoyance... by qortra · · Score: 4, Informative

    I searched in vain for anything in the article that says something about sound. Even if the ad will have audio, I don't think it will last long in that form. From what I understand, the technology to put relatively cheap audio ads in print periodicals has been around for sometime - nobody uses them for a reason. It would make the periodical a menace for any environment where quiet is valued (e.g. doctor's office or library). Pure video, on the other hand, does not suffer from this problem.

    Moreover, I'm sure that if they can make a small flexible screen, then can probably also make a small "unmute" button that allows the user to choose to listen to the ad.

  2. Youtube video of the product... by f8l_0e · · Score: 4, Informative

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7GErbdNRrE

  3. Yes. With Sound. by SeaFox · · Score: 4, Informative

    Yes, there will be sound, no you can't set the volume, yes it plays with sound when you first open it, this is an advertisement after all -- they want you to attract the attention of those around you.

    You should check out the Wired article. It has a YouTube clip.

  4. Re:fun hacking? Er..no. Imagine the annoyance... by dotancohen · · Score: 3, Informative

    I searched in vain for anything in the article that says something about sound.

    It does have sound. It this video posted by another commenter below, you can see the speaker at the 1:02 minute mark:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7GErbdNRrE

    --
    It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong.
  5. Re:Any interesting Esquire e-ink hacks by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    It couldn't be repurposed. It was a fixed layout Eink design. Nothing more than an overglorified LCD style animation, similar to those in the Tiger Electronics and Game & Watch systems. Portions became dark, those portions became light. The screen itself couldn't have been salvaged for anything because while it was Eink, it wasn't the kind of Eink that many people hoped it would be (individual granules acting as pixels.)