Louis D. Giacalone, Jr
President and Founder CoolSign
Haivision Network Video
I feel our association is at a crossroads. Whether we like it or not, we are in a competition for voice within our own industry, and as such our ability to accomplish our objectives of education, outreach, and advocacy are severely compromised. The fact that the Digital Signage Federation exists and continues to grow, illuminates a failure within our organization to effectively unite the industry and provide the strong voice it so dearly needs. While we have certainly made some progress in the past year, it has come very slowly, providing time for other voices such as DSF to grow. Top on my agenda, should you choose me to lead our efforts would be to reconcile our organization with the DSF to create the single voice needed for us all. Further, I believe the trade show situation remains in need of rationalization, as we now have more, not fewer, events in the industry. Anything less than succeeding in these goals will leave our group AND our industry crippled and weak.
As one who has been a part of this industry since its very early days, I feel I am well suited to the task. Those who know me can attest that since probably 1999 or 2000 I have consistently initiated efforts to bring folks together and to cooperate constructively. A perfect example of this is the technical standards effort that is progressing nicely under the auspices of POPAI, of which I was the catalyst to getting that going. I believe in open dialogs, collaboration, and swift decisive action - the things I believe our group needs most now. I have in fact already spoken with like minded members of the DSF and am confident that the goals I laid out are achievable.
Lastly, I'd like to note that I am a frequent speaker at industry events worldwide and am well suited to advance the DSA agenda items of outreach and advocacy as well. In the next few months I will be speaking in Europe at DSE Germany and keynoting the Digital Signage World Australia event. I would be my honor to represent us and advance our cause around the world.
Biography:
Mr. Giacalone is a recognized pioneer and expert in the digital media field. He is the original inventor of the CoolSign Digital Signage software suite and founder of AdSpace Networks, the company that began developing CoolSign, in 1998. Under Mr. Giacalone’s direction, CoolSign had set the bar as a premier digital signage software package. Also at AdSpace, he pioneered the deployment of digital advertising networks, launching what is now the largest network of screens in shopping malls. Mr. Giacalone became an independent consultant in 2006 and helped high profile clients like the Pentagon in Washington DC and the Playboy Club in Las Vegas deploy their digital signage networks. In 2007, Mr. Giacalone joined Titan Worldwide, as SVP of Digital to develop and launch their digital initiatives. The result was cutting edge network deployments at CTA and MTA on buses, trains, and rail stations. Mr. Giacalone rejoined CoolSign following its acquisition by CS Software Holdings in 2009. In November 2010, as CoolSign was acquired by Haivision Network Video, a global leader in advanced video network technology. Today, Lou Giacalone keeps his title as “Founder of CoolSign”, but now as part of the Haivision Team.
Mr. Giacalone brings a unique set of skills to Haivision, blending technical competence with management experience in sales, marketing, multimedia content development, engineering, and field operations. Prior to founding AdSpace, Mr. Giacalone served in a variety of technical, marketing, and product management positions at Silicon Gaming. There he was a designer of the first high-volume multimedia slot machine for the gaming industry, established the creative group responsible for content development, and personally handled securing regulatory approvals for the machine. Before joining Silicon Gaming, Mr. Giacalone was an engineering group manager with Electronic Arts and developed 3D graphics tools for use in the creation of art for the company's next-generation video games. Earlier, Mr. Giacalone was a founder of a variety of companies, including Infinidisc Corporation, developers of an advanced Compact Disc jukebox system; Solid Ideas, developers of sophisticated computer graphics software; and Advanced Entertainment Associates, producers of 3D computer graphics and animation for both television and print media.
Mr. Giacalone studied Computer Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, and at Polytechnic University, and holds seven patents.
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