LA Leads the Way on Mobile
Think beacon-enabled proximity marketing applies only to retail? Think again.
California’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Los Angeles Zoo both plan to tap the technology to send visitors on their way.
Users of smartphones with iOS 7.1, Android 4.3 and newer versions of the operating systems can download apps to receive location-specific information transmitted via Bluetooth Low Energy beacons (beacons are small battery-powered pieces of hardware).
The LA Zoo uses beacons to offer guests a guided tour of the Rainforest of the Americas exhibit. Users can scroll through the app to learn about the nearest animal or habitat, watch videos, listen to audio files or view photos.
And the MTA will soon add as many as 50 beacons to LA’s Union Station to guide commuters to ticket vending machines or the nearest escalator, for example.
