Ads/en

Description of the Situation

A new functionality has been added to the SmartPlayer personal account, allowing the creation of announcements for broadcasts with scheduled times. This new functionality has been placed in a separate section of the personal account (PA) called "Announcements."

The "Announcements" section located in the personal account

Need for the Functionality

This functionality was specifically developed to address the need for integrating additional advertising elements into broadcasts and fully automating this process.
Previously, this could also be done, but only through complex, unclear, and "hacky" methods. Moreover, the process required the user to perform many actions manually.

How It Works

Operational Logic

The user needs to select a device in the "Devices" section.
Next, they should set a schedule for the selected device. This is done by clicking on the device itself and navigating to the toolbar on the right. In the toolbar, there will be an item called "Schedule," where the necessary settings can be configured.
The created and configured announcement is integrated into the scheduled broadcast. The announcement plays at the specified time intervals. The playback process works as follows:

• The ongoing broadcast is interrupted and paused when the time coincides with the start time of the announcement.

It is important to set the correct duration interval for the announcement, taking into account the length of the content that will be played. If the content duration exceeds the selected announcement interval, there are likely to be issues with the integration and playback of the announcement in the broadcast.

• The announcement starts playing according to the selected time interval.
• After reaching the upper limit of the time interval, the announcement ends, and the broadcast resumes.

The announcement will play in full even if it exceeds the time slot (upper time limit).

Users can use announcements in broadcasts where multiple content elements are present.

If the announcement has a repeat parameter set, it will be saved and will await the next scheduled time for playback.
If the repeat interval is not set in the announcement settings, it will complete its cycle and disappear.

Workflow of "Announcements"

Creating an Announcement

To create an announcement, you need to select a device where the broadcast is scheduled. If there is no schedule, it must be created.

To create an announcement, go to the "Announcements" section in your personal account. There are two ways to create an announcement:

Button to add in the toolbar

Button to add on the main page of the "Announcements" section

1. Through the toolbar on the left in the "Announcements" section, there is a dedicated button. This method allows you to always create an announcement.
2. On the main page of the "Announcements" section, using a dedicated button. This method does not work when there is at least one previously created announcement.

After using one of these options, the announcement settings window will open.

Announcement Settings

The content that can be used in announcements is limited. Only video and photo content can be used in announcements.

The settings page consists of three blocks:

1. Main Settings - This section contains the main settings.
2. Devices - Here, you select the device to which the announcement will be applied. The selected device must have a schedule.
3. Summary - Final information about the announcement.

Main Settings Page"

Basic Settings Page

On the "Main Settings" page, you need to set all the settings for the correct operation of the announcements:

1. Title - Here the announcement title is specified.
2. Additional Description - In this section, a description/comment about the broadcast is written.
3. Start Date - Sets the date when the announcement will start to "intervene" in the broadcast schedule. By clicking on the "Calendar" icon, a window with dates in the form of a calendar will appear, where you can select the desired date.
4. End Date - Sets the date when the announcement will stop playing. By clicking on the "Calendar" icon, a window with dates in the form of a calendar will appear, where you can select the desired date.
5. Play Announcement Every - An interval that allows you to choose the frequency of playing the announcement in the broadcast with a schedule. You can choose the unit of measurement for this value: minutes, seconds, hours.
6. Playback Time - Sets the time to start and turn off the announcement in the broadcast with a schedule.
7. Warning Information - Information that notifies about the mechanism of embedding the announcement in the broadcast.
8. More/Hide - A button that opens additional settings.
9. Use Time Formats - Allows you to choose between "UTC time" and "Local Time". It is recommended to use "Local Time".
10. "Cancel" and "Next" buttons - The cancel button allows you to return to the main page of the "Announcements" section. The "Next" button allows you to proceed to the next stage of settings. To activate the "Next" button, it is essential to choose content; otherwise, a warning window will pop up.

Warning window

On this page, there is also a content work window. It includes:

Window for working with content

1. Search Window - Allows you to find content by typing the file name in the search bar.
2. Sorting - Sorts content by three parameters: creation date, name, size.
3. Content Selection - Allows you to select all content at once or cancel the selection if the content was selected.
4. Display Window - Offers to choose display formats of the available content either as tiles or as a list.
5. Upload File - Allows you to upload content directly from the user's device.
6. Content Location Path - Shows the path where the content is located.
7. Content Type - Allows you to sort content into "pictures" and "videos" when clicked.

Страница "Устройства"

Общик вид страницы "Устройства"

После заполнения всех данных на странице "Основные настройки" и нажатия кнопки "Далее", пользователя переносит на страницу "Устройства".
На данной странице пользователь выбирает устройство, на которое будет применено объявление. Выбрать устройство можно кликом мышки. Выбранное устройство будет помечено "галочкой".

Отмеченное, выбранное устройство

После выбора устройства необходимо нажать кнопку "Далее".

Страница "Сводка"

Общик вид страницы "Сводка"

Итоговым шагом к завершению создания объявления является получение информации со страницы "Сводка". Страница "Сводка" условно можно разбить на две части:

• Зона с общей информацией об объявление, именуемой "Сводка"

В данной зоне прописана общая информация об объявлении, которая включает в себя описание основных параметров, выставленные в разделе "Основные настройки"

• Зона с информацией о конфликтах объявления с устройством или трансляцией, именуемой - "Конфликты".

В этой зоне прописана информации о конфликтах объявления с устройством или трансляцией, которые необходимо решить. Если данные конфликты не решить, то создать объявление, после нажатия клавиши "Решить конфликты и сохранить" будет невозможно. О проблеме предупредит специальная всплывающая строка.

Пример всплывающего оповещения о наличии конфликта

После решения всех конфликтов нажимаем кнопку "Решить конфликты и сохранить" и переходим на финальную страницу. На этой странице отображается уже готовое объявление.

Готовое объявление

Deleting an Advertisement

A completed advertisement can be deleted in one way. To do this, click on it once and move to the right toolbar. There the user can see a "Trash" icon, which is used to delete the advertisement.

Icon location for deleting an ad

Useful Information

• An advertisement plays in full, even if it goes beyond the timeline's upper boundary (time limit).
• To create an "Ad" on a device, there must be a scheduled broadcast. If there is no schedule, it needs to be created.
• In advertisements, only photo and video content should be used.
• You should use a schedule with one zone and one page. Otherwise, the system won't allow the creation of the advertisement and will ask to start over.
• If an advertisement doesn't appear in the list after creation, the issue might be due to filter settings. Check the current filter status and try different ones.
• Every advertisement gets an ID upon creation. This invisible parameter can influence the ad's behavior in the schedule.
• If multiple content types are added to an advertisement, they will play in the order they were added. Meaning, the one added earlier will play first. This is related to the assignment of IDs for each ad. The first ad gets a smaller ID value and thus will be the first to play.
• If there are two ads in the schedule, and the first one is modified, it will play last. This is because when modified, the ad is deleted and recreated. At this moment, it gets a new ID, which is naturally larger than the second ad's.
• By default, it's recommended to use local time when creating an ad.
• If you don't choose content when creating an ad and press "Next," a pop-up message will appear saying, "Ad content not selected."
• Ads can be applied to both online and offline devices. The main thing is that the device has at least one schedule.
• In the "Summary" section, all conflicts found during ad creation are highlighted. To complete the ad creation, all conflicts need to be resolved.
• If you need to delete several ads, it's recommended to do them one by one.
• Double-clicking on a completed ad allows you to edit it.
• If the schedule ends and the ad is still playing, the ad will stop.
• To save device memory, the ad will be deleted after the "End Date" passes and if there's no repeat event set.
• Ads affect content playback statistics.
• After connecting the device to the server, the device will receive advertisement information within a minute.

Final Result

Users can easily and seamlessly integrate "Ads" into their broadcasts.

Дополнительная информация

Если данная статья не помогает использовать функционал по назначению или после ее прочтения остаются вопросы можно озвучить данные вопросы в разделе "Обсуждения" вверху страницы

Пример отображения вкладки "Обсуждения" на wiki-странице