Manchester-based IoT solutions provider, Sparta Digital, has used Google technology to bring its newest creation to life.
The Buzzin app helps visitors explore and keep up-to-date with all of the latest activities the city has to offer.
For example, when they walk into places of interest like museums, libraries or art galleries they will receive contextual information and help to navigate around things of interest acting as a virtual guide.
Northern Quarter’s Sparta Digital who developed the Buzzin app is using Eddystone, an open beacon format from Google.
The beacons themselves are provided by Sensoro, who pioneered the manufacturing of the new technology.
More than 100 beacons have been installed in buses, art galleries, tourist attractions and various local businesses within Manchester.
Marketing director Vijay Natarajan said: “The privacy and security of our customers is important to us.
“Through the use of a rotating Ephemeral Identifier, the technology protects our users by preventing spoofing, malicious asset tracking, replay attacks, or just unpermitted access.
“With these new features from Eddystone, it opens the door for wider application within smart city projects that we are currently working on.”
Buzzin app also provides travel updates and an easy to use hop-on ticketing system for travelling on public transport.
Buzzin is a ‘one button click’ app to pay for travel and related deals.
It is currently being trialled on the Burnley to Manchester routes with Beacons installed on some Transdev buses.
The app has been welcomed by local tourist destinations as it encourages visitors to hop-on the bus and pay for tickets on the way to venues.
Digital manager at Manchester Craft and Design Centre, Christine Hitchins said: “With Beacons installed within our premises, we are able to provide a more interactive experience to our visitors”.
Natarajan added: “Sensoro’s Beacons operates with Sparta’s Buzzin analytics platform to enable businesses to deliver digital experiences based on the user’s current physical context and location, via mobile.
“This helps brands to increase consumer engagement and provide value added services across a network of high footfall and high dwell locations in Manchester.”
