Stores urged to use video analytics
Increased competition in the retail market amid sluggish economic growth has led to a wider adoption of video analytics as an industry-wide platform to increase sales opportunities, says an industry leader.
Greater nationwide high-speed wireless network coverage and higher speeds of broadband services should also lead to the increased used of analytics technology, said Eakkawuth Wangdul, managing director of Clever Source Co.
“We believe video analytics will become a more exciting emerging trend for the retail sector within two years thanks to the widespread nationwide use of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras,” he said.
CCTV, also known as video surveillance, is used for the purpose of observing an area for gathering information, preventing crime, protecting a process, person or object, or for the investigation of crime.
Mr Eakkawuth said next-generation video surveillance systems were helpful in identifying customer movements through a store, providing visual intelligence to optimise store layouts and merchandising to satisfy customers.
“Marketers can integrate this consumer behaviour into their marketing strategies to improve customer satisfaction and increase sales,” he said.
Clever Source is marketing its cloudbased retail video analytics service, which is produced by Prism Skylabs, a San Francisco-based video surveillance firm.
Mr Eakkawuth said the system, offered on a subscription basis, could significantly lower upfront investment costs because retailers would not need to buy any type of server.
In addition, higher broadband speeds enable users to transfer video files to the cloud.
The company’s target customers are clothing stores, he said.
Video analytics is also used in entertainment, health-care, automotive, transport, home automation, safety and security sectors. Algorithms can be implemented as software or hardware.
Mr Eakkawuth cited a report by global market research firm ABI that forecasts the market for global video analytics will exceed US$3 billion by 2018.
He acknowledged that even though online shopping was a rapidly growing trend in today’s global business environment, most sales and revenue still came from brick-and-mortar stores.
The government’s attempt to transform Thailand into a digital economy is likely to accelerate the adoption of new advanced technologies in all industries to boost productivity and operational efficiency.
Thailand’s retail sector has strong potential to lead the market in Southeast Asia, said Mr Eakkawuth.