The Audio Spotlight

Imagine you are window shopping, and an ad starts to play, trying to persuade you to get the desired purchase.  You look around, but no one else seems to hear it. Have you gone crazy? No, but the advertising industry has.

“WHAT MAKES A SOUND SOURCE DIRECTIONAL.” Audio Spotlight by Holosonics, www.holosonics.com/what-makes-a-sound-source-directional/.

The Audio Spotlight creates a narrow beam of sound that can be controlled with the same exactness as light. You just point the speaker at your desired listening area to keep sound specifically centered on your listeners and silent everywhere else. The company, Holosonics, is located in the U.S that develops and installs directional loudspeaker tech, as well as other products.  The company's founder is M.I.T. graduate, Dr. F. Joseph Pompei, creator of the Audio Spotlight. It is being used now on billboards, in stores, and in homes, and has been out since the early 2000's. I don’t know where it is being developed, but the Holosonics Audio visual equipment store is located at 400 Pleasant Street Watertown, Massachusetts. The advertising industry has a need for this innovation. They want it because it can target specific customers. Companies and large businesses will pay a lot of money so they can whisper their advertisements right into their customer's ears. In conclusion, the advertising industry will obtain an abundance of money from this exciting invention.

Holosonic created this invention so that commercial and advertising companies could target specific people to sell their product too, as opposed to having to broadcast their product to many people at once, most of which just dismiss it anyways.  It was created in the U.S because Americans are big consumers of technology. “The targeted sound helps to further associate the phone as a music player, while also drawing more attention from crowds and increasing the effectiveness of the message (www.holosonics.com).” This quote was talking about a big billboard which advertised a phone.   This billboard was getting a lot of attention not only because of its large size and flashy colors, but of the people targeted by the sound of the advertisement. “This nation has produced the world’s biggest technology companies like Google, Facebook, Apple, Intel, IBM and Microsoft. These technology behemoths have changed the way people live worldwide (www.young-diplomats.com).”  This quote tells us why this tech was created in the U.S, and says that America is home to some of the biggest technological advancements in the world, so it only makes sense that most Americans utilize technology in one form or another.

I think that this innovation is important to the global community because it will retain a sort of quiet environment where multiple people can enjoy a room in various ways.  “Producing a narrow beam of sound, wide enough to cover only a single person or two, the Audio Spotlight speaker allows every seat in the living room to be a different experience, and the home to be a more peaceful, and shared space (www.holosonics.com).”  This shows that the Audio Spotlight can transform one room into a unique space for each individual.  This is important to the global community because you can save space and have multiple things quietly going on in the same room, instead of having a bunch of people in different rooms. “Audio Spotlight speakers can also be used to enjoy TV or music in bed, without impeding on a spouse's ability to slumber soundly right next to you, or for increasing the listening level for the hard of hearing at a particular seat, without drowning everyone else out in the rest of the room (www.holosonics.com).” This incredible invention can make family gatherings and nighttime TV so much more serene and peaceful because it can adjust sound for a single person’s needs.  This is important to the global community because it can silence a lot of disputes about music, TV, and radio.

“Family Wathching Flat Tv at Modern Home Indoor.” Serenity AV, serenityav.com/services/residential/family-wathching-flat-tv-at-modern-home-indoor/.

I strongly believe  that this innovation will have a positive impact because it could make people’s lives a lot easier.  This will make people’s days more undemanding by assisting in their everyday life, and can be used in these instances, “Limiting sound bleed in open concept layouts, assisted listening for the hard of hearing, bedtime TV viewing without disturbing partner, private wake up alarms, and split screen TV with private audio for each viewer (www.holosonics.com).” The Audio Spotlight can also be used as an advertisement tool, which can make people more aware of prices of items, and new items on the market, which in turn can make their lives easier.  This will calm the turmoil of everyday hustle and bustle, including the TV! Nowadays there are literally hundreds of channels to choose from, making watching TV a pain.  “With so much selection, it's much easier to pick what you want, but your preference may not be what your partner, or your child, or parent wants. Maybe they don't even want to watch, or hear, anything at all (www.holosonics.com).”  This invention can literally revolutionize a room so that multiple people can all have different experiences.  

The Holosonic Audio Spotlight is similar to Gutenberg's printing press because before the press, people had to copy things by hand, using up valuable time.  After the printing press, ideas and works were more easily and quickly spread.  Before the Audio Spotlight, advertisements were broadcast across a wide range, impacting very few people, and taking up a lot of time.  Now, more people are getting impacted by  these advertisements, and more ideas are being spread with much less effort.  

“Top 10 of the Most High Tech Countries in the World -.” The Leading Magazine for Students in International Relations., 28 Nov. 2016, www.young-diplomats.com/top-10-high-tech-countries-world/.

“Home.” Audio Spotlight by Holosonics, www.holosonics.com/.

“CONSUMER.” Audio Spotlight by Holosonics, www.holosonics.com/applications/consumer.