AVI-SPL announced the debut of XTG (Experience Technology Group), a new business unit specializing in experiential technology design, integration, installation and support. The unit will work in partnership with an ecosystem of architects, experience designers, brand agencies, fabricators, consultants and technology vendors.

We here at rAVe think this is an excellent move in the right direction for the AV industry. rAVe founder, Gary Kayye, teaches advertising at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A core part of his new media technologies class curriculum is teaching students about experiential marketing and advertising. He has consulted with companies like Cisco, Canon, Dominos and LG on experiential advertising projects as well.

“This is genius timing and exactly the direction that big AV integrators should be heading,” Gary said about the announcement. “I’ve always said that in the future, the digital signage market will simply be called advertising.”

Headed up by Julian Phillips, XTG managing director and senior vice president at AVI-SPL, XTG plans to provide scalable expertise and consistency to customers looking for experiential solutions delivered all around the world.

“The universal and dramatic impact of the pandemic, together with the prospect of a hybrid work future, is causing every company to re-evaluate their business model and reimagine their relationships with customers and employees alike,” said Phillips. “Customer engagement and employee experience are everything. We have to redefine our value in a ‘digilog’ world, where analog and digital fuse, and that’s what XTG does.”