Presentation technology is ripe for disruption. Current presentation tools are barely a step above the overhead projectors seen in classrooms since the beginning of time. Slides move on and off the page, and sometimes you make your text “appear” or “wipe right” if you’re feeling adventurous. We’ve got a lot of connectivity in our laps and in our pockets, and a Finnish startup, Screen.io, seeks to take advantage of it.
With Screen.io software presenters can collect, analyse and present audience feedback. Through one application, users can set up interactive presentations that include slides imported from Keynote or PowerPoint, videos, images, polls and live results, and a controlled discussion channel. Screen.io’s website talks about 3 way communication between you and your audience, your audience and you, and audience to audience. It makes a lot of sense in the digital age, and seems a lot better than the fragmented discussions taken place using a Twitter hashtag.
During the presentation the audience can vote, discuss, ask questions, as well as view the presentation slides in real-time on their own devices. The presenter can choose to show the poll results, audience comments and questions real time on the big screen. Additional features like discussion moderation and highlighting add value to the dynamic presentations and make sure that the presenter stays in control.
Screen.io’s participation technology is web-based. Audience members can access the
presentation session via URL that the software creates for every presentation. There’s nothing to download or install for the audience — any smart phone or laptop is enough to participate.
The company has just released “Slides & Polls”, which is intended for individual presenters and is distributed in the Mac App Store. The company is also building up services for events, designed to capture audience attention and allow managers to collect and analyze statistics.
