Digital Signage Today has posted about November’s The Digital Signage Show and KioskCom Self-Service Expo:

November’s editions of the The Digital Signage Show, along with KioskCom Self-Service Expo, co-located at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City, are set to offer a slate of content that includes new educational opportunities and two significant keynote speeches.

“This is the year of new everything,” said Lawrence Dvorchik, general manager of the two shows, which are organized by Connecticut-based JD Events. “It’s been busy. It’s going to be a really exciting event.”

Contest, live demo among fresh programming

The “new everything” Dvorchik describes includes a competition for entrepreneurs in the kiosk and self-service space that is the first of its kind for the event. In its “Next Big Idea” Contest Coinstar Inc. will give $10,000 to the entrant with the best new concept in retail-based kiosks. Coinstar also may consider investing in the winning concept.

“There are a lot of people out there with a lot of good ideas who either don’t have access to funding, especially now, or don’t have access to the people that can make that happen,” he said. “And this gives them an opportunity to be in front of executives at a company like Coinstar, who can do all of the above, if they believe the idea is worth rolling out, and really take it to the next level.”

Entries must be submitted by Oct. 8 on the contest’s Web site.

On the digital signage side of the show, attendees can view a content-creation demonstration, “Cooking up Content: From Concept to Screen.” Digital signage industry expert Lyle Bunn will host the demonstration, and Dvorchik says three companies will participate in creating individual digital messaging campaigns in a “fishbowl” environment, with attendees literally watching the process in action.

“It will be a really, really good demonstration of the content-creation process, the content-management process, from the creative briefing all the way to the play loop being created and broadcast,” he said.

Dvorchik said the participating companies aren’t yet confirmed. The demonstration, which will span the two-day event, is another part of show organizers’ goal of constant education.

“Relevant content is so important for any of these networks that we need to make sure we’re helping people understand not just what they want to show, but how that process is going to unfold strategically and creatively in order to be successful the first time out of the box,” Dvorchik said.

JD Events and Exponation both announced today that their digital signage-oriented tradeshows have made the list of Tradeshow Week Magazine’s 2009 Fastest 50, which recognizes the 50 fastest-growing trade and consumer shows in North America based on total net square footage and percentage growth between 2006 and 2008.

JD Events operates KioskCom Self Service Expo & The Digital Signage Show, and Exponation operates Digital Signage Expo. Both companies will be honored on Nov. 15 at an awards ceremony in Houston, Texas.

“To be recognized by a publication that is so well-regarded by our peers and professionals in this industry is truly an honor,’ said Joel Davis, CEO of JD Events, the organization behind KioskCom Self Service Expo & The Digital Signage Show. “We are thrilled to be included as one of Tradeshow Week’s Fastest 50 shows and now with our fourth award honoring the shows, we are excited to join an extremely elite group of less than 20 events that have received this award four or more times.”

“We are honored to have again been selected as one of Tradeshow Week’s Fastest 50 shows,” said Angelo Varrone, CEO of Exponation, LLC, which produces Digital Signage Expo. “We won this award in 2007, which was the first year we were eligible. We are thrilled that our show has joined this select group of winning events for the second time in three years.”

Digital Signage Expo, which includes the Interactive Technology Expo, the Out-of-Home Network Show, The Digital Content Show, and The Mobile Marketing Show, will be at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas to run February 23-25, 2010. KioskCom Self Service Expo & The Digital Signage Show is scheduled for November 10-11, 2009, in New York City.