A Canadian company that used Qualcomm's (NASDAQ:QCOM) Gimbal geolocation beacon technology to create a series of secure ad-hoc networks for interactive sessions at the recent South By Southwest Interactive conference in Austin, Texas, also intends to use the technology at future events.
The beacon technology enabled real-time indoor mapping and data-gathering during SXSW. "This wasn't possible before Gimbal. GPS wasn't precise enough" said Jeff Sinclair, co-founder of Eventbase Technologies, who was quoted in a USA Today article.
Using Gimbal, Vancouver, British Columbia-based Eventbase allowed users of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iOS devices users in 150 SXSW sessions to vote and interact digitally with strangers in the same room. USA Today noted that Gimbal services cannot be used with smartphones and tablets based upon Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android operating system because they do not yet broadcast a user's presence to a temporary local network.
Sinclair described the interactive services enabled by Gimbal technology as "a game changer." In fact, the Gimbal-powered wireless services at SXSW were such a hit that Eventbase will again use the technology to provide services to Apple devices at New York's Tribeca Film Festival next month and to the Cannes Lion advertising awards show in France this June.
Qualcomm announced the commercial release of its Gimbal-brand proximity beacons in December 2013 through its Qualcomm Retail Solutions subsidiary. The Gimbal beacons--which employ low-energy Bluetooth Smart technology--are available in two models and are accurate down to one foot whether indoors or outdoors.
Retailers are especially interested in beacons because they can be used to track in-store customers, helping them deliver relevant, personalized content to customer devices to drive more sales. Beacons can also enable in-store analytics, indoor navigation and contactless payments.
For more:
- see this USA Today article
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