It’s September, which means summer is coming to an end. But I’ve got to say… What a great summer it turned out to be! I published my last article in June, at the very start of summer. After a summer break from writing, I’m back with a new article. This time, I’d like to take you on a time-travelling journey through the past three months and explain why I thought they were so great.
Trip to Wales
Several things got me excited this summer. The first is the huge number of new customers who have joined our new online platform. But I’m equally proud of us winning the public tender launched by Cadw (the Welsh Government’s historic environment service). As this now makes us the exclusive audio guide supplier for all Cadw sites, we’ll be providing many castles and manor houses in Wales with a great audio tour in the near future. This news is extra special for me on a personal level: in 2008, I travelled to Conwy in Wales to add the historic townhouse Plas Mawr – a Cadw site – to our platform, as the second customer ever. Being awarded the status of Cadw’s exclusive audio guide supplier 14 years later is something I’m very proud of!
A new era for audio tours
The second reason why I have such fond memories of this summer has everything to do with Podcatcher. The first prototypes of the new Podcatcher have been produced – and they’re so cool! The idea of developing a new, revolutionary player first came about two years ago. Just over ten years after the launch of the first Podcatcher, we thought it would be fantastic to develop something innovative again. And so we did. Holding the prototype in my hands, it feels really good. What an awesome bit of work by our hardware heroes Richard and Taco, under the inspiring guidance of Thomas. I’m sure the Podcatcher Pro will herald a new era for audio tours, just like the first Podcatcher did over a decade ago. ‘Tell me more’, I hear you say!
Tour the museum
Let me give you a sneak peek. Imagine a device that tells museum visitors stories in their language, at their level. A device that takes visitors through the museum, guided by the story. Depending on where the visitor is in the museum, they will hear atmospheric music, listen to stories that start automatically as soon as they reach art objects, or be able to seamlessly activate a story themselves.The space essentially moulds itself to the visitor, with large screens displaying a film clip as soon as the visitor approaches. Visitors can use the device as a controller to play a game and share their answers to certain topics. All these answers are collected continuously and displayed on the spot, in the museum itself, as large projections. To top it all off, the device can also be used to guide groups and provide school classes with an unforgettable, interactive treasure hunt. It all seems almost too good to be true… But nothing could be further from the truth, as the new Podcatcher will soon be a reality.
New features available by the package
And now the third and final reason for my good mood: we’ve managed to fit all the new features into a few very simple packages. These features include the new software platform, plus the Podcatcher Pro. The packages make it very easy – especially for new customers – to make that first step and become more confident with using the features. This is our way of breaking down barriers where we can and making people’s first encounter with audio tours as enjoyable as possible. To top it off, the first package is also free. But more on that later.
Dipping my feet in the water, laptop open
All in all, I can say I’m a happy man. Not only because of everything mentioned above and everything that’s happening in the coming months, but also because of the wonderful weather! I decided to spend the summer in the Netherlands, and I didn’t regret that choice for one moment. There was no need to holiday in Spain to enjoy a bit of warmth. Dipping my feet in the water, chilled drink in hand, laptop open: I’ve had worse days at the office. These are the ideal conditions to get creative about our strategy and the future. Now that summer’s coming to an end, we’re moving forward at a rapid pace. The first prototypes are ready and are now being tested in-house. We’d like to have the first production run tested by customers and partners (Exhibition Designers). If you’d like to join in our innovation and can think of applications for our new platform, please send me a private message. We’re always open to new, awesome input.