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Product category: Switches and Keyboards
News Release from: Abacus Group
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial Team on 28 August 2003

Console contract is entertaining fare

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Abacus Group is to supply, install and maintain a new generation of television-style entertainment consoles in London taxis, for in-taxi broadcast specialist Cabvision.

Abacus Group is to supply, install and maintain a new generation of television-style entertainment consoles in London taxis, for in-taxi broadcast specialist Cabvision Cabvision's current unit is fitted to 100 taxis, but Cabvision plans to expand its installed base to between 1000 and 4000 of London's 13,000 black cabs with a new, more advanced unit

Abacus Group is to design, manufacture and support the console, and supply Microsoft Windows XP embedded software.

Microsoft has marked the occasion by sponsoring two Cabvision taxis, which will be wrapped with corporate branding for one year.

The programme is managed within Abacus Group by its specialist display subsidiary Trident Microsystems.

Commenting on the success of Cabvision, CEO Jon Marquis said: "Travellers enjoy the appealing and informative content, and advertisers are able to reach a fast moving audience that is hard to address through other media.

Blue chip advertisers, including Microsoft for the Xbox launch, BT, Adidas, Compaq and Dell, have recognised the unique proposition and audience that we offer".

He continued: "Our Mark 2 unit significantly develops both the volume of advertising we can provide, and the quality of the service we can provide users.

It features a GPRS wireless connection for fast and easy updating of news and other content, an enhanced screen, and features that help provide an exceptionally high quality user experience.

The Microsoft XP Embedded operating system contributes significantly to this experience, offering the capability to easily implement advanced interactive and multimedia features".

Commenting on the relationship with Abacus subsidiary Trident, Marquis added: "Trident supplied many of the components for our first unit.

They exhibited an excellent understanding of our business approach and our technical requirements, and on this basis, we asked them to design and build a bespoke Mark 2 unit for us".

Phillip Swan, Vice President, Device Solution Sales, Microsoft Corp, congratulated Cabvision and Abacus Group on their successful partnership saying, "Channel partners like Abacus Group, who are able to build on our software platforms to offer their customers creative solutions for their system design challenges, have a significant role to play in our business".

Martin Kent, CEO of Abacus Group, added: "Cabvision's concept of in-taxi entertainment is extremely exciting, and deserves its success with travellers and advertisers.

Our partnership with them is a perfect example of the way in which we can enable creative business concepts by breaking down the technical barriers towards their implementation with a bespoke, ready to use solution".

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