Airport Signage Innovation at FTE Global 2025: New Systems and Strategies Drives Results for Airports
- Abagael Rudock
- Oct 16
- 4 min read
At FTE Global 2025, Synect brought together a panel of industry leaders to discuss how airport signage innovation is reshaping the passenger experience.
Airport signage should be more than information displays. It should be a strategic channel that helps airports drive ongoing efficiency, reputation, and growth. Read on to learn more about how airports can realize those benefits with strategic content and smart systems.
The Rise of DCMS: Unifying Airport Communication
For decades, airport digital displays were locked into two primary functions: flight information and advertising. That narrow use wasn’t a lack of imagination; it reflected the limits of the predominant solutions available. Legacy systems simply weren’t built to do more. But the rise of Digital Content Management Systems (DCMS) has changed everything.
With modern platforms like Synect’s Passenger360®, airports can unify FIDS, BIDS, GIDS, wayfinding, advertising, and more into a single, powerful ecosystem. This shift isn’t just technical. It’s strategic. It reframes content from an afterthought to a core infrastructure need that enables smarter communication and dynamic, scalable passenger engagement across the airport.
The advent of content-first strategy, paired with DCMS and augmented by ongoing airport signage innovation, gives airports ultimate flexibility as they pursue their goals.
As Synect's CEO, Yahav Ran, explained:
“We are looking for a tangible outcome—either in the field of revenues, efficiency, or reputation. The key for all of those things is communication.”
As airports improve their communication, they’re improving passenger experiences and operational outcomes. When signage is smarter and more flexible, it’s more impactful, unlocking new benefits for passengers and airports.
BUR’s Cost-Saving DCMS Implementation
When Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR) embarked on a once-in-a-lifetime, $1.2 billion terminal replacement, signage was initially scoped in a familiar way: a traditional FIDS package with limited branding and advertising. Content strategy had not been a key part of the initial planning, and with the project budget locked changing anything seemed nearly impossible.
That changed when the project team explored Synect’s content-first approach and Passenger360® DCMS as an all-in-one solution. What began as a fixed, conventional scope evolved into a vision for a holistic, airport-wide digital ecosystem complete with custom, high-impact content. Rather than investing in separate solutions for flight information, wayfinding, advertising, and branding, everything could be unified under one intelligent system.
The new perspective brought incredible success, as Ian shared:
“We were able to cover the cost of the new screens without adding to the capital program ... it ended up being a win for everyone.”
By reframing the project through the lens of content, Synect helped project stakeholders uncover unexpected value. Instead of adding cost or disrupting schedule, the new approach saved more than 70% of the original budget while expanding the scope to deliver a dynamic LED media canvas that reaches every passenger.
The BUR team was delighted by the new approach and its results, with one contractor sharing that they found their “real passion ... DCMS.” As they look toward the future, they’re thinking about new ways to use their displays and reimagining the role of content.
Lower costs give airports more flexibility. Smart systems reduce operational burden. Better content creates better passenger experiences, which increases airport efficiency and revenue. As J.D. Power recently showed, passengers spend 39% more when their experiences are ‘perfect’. With smarter systems and strategies, airports can consistently deliver perfect passenger experiences.
Screens Still Matter in a Mobile-First World
Faith Varwig, Founder and Managing Principal of Faith group, moderated our panel and posed a question she hears often: why invest in digital displays when passengers are already paying attention to their smartphones?
As our panelists explained, there are a wide variety of reasons to continue investing in digital displays. Prasad Yarlagadda shared one surprising statistic:
“Forty percent of passengers still rely on screens, even when mobile options are available. If you’re traveling with the family, you don’t have the luxury of opening the phone, opening the app, connecting to whatever it is you need. When you have information readily available, all you have to do is glance.”
Smartphones come with a variety of limitations: international travelers may not have a connection; batteries can run dry; users may be hesitant to download a new app.
Yahav Ran helped illuminate the relationship passengers have with displays:
“Displays are anchor points that provide an opportunity to connect. They’re always visible and don’t require passengers to take action."
Dynamic digital displays are always available, and with the right technology, they’re always accurate. Faith explained how important that is for some passengers:
“Different types of passengers have different media needs, and you can’t leave them behind by focusing on one form of media.”
Older travelers, frequent flyers, and international passengers all benefit from well-placed, multilingual, and accessible displays. Synect’s DCMS supports real-time language adaptation, ensuring every passenger feels informed and welcomed. With the right content, every screen can help reduce stress, improve satisfaction, and ease passengers’ movement through complex airport environments.
Airport Signage Innovation is Helping Airports Influence Behavior and Improve Revenue
Smart signage does much more than share information.
It influences how passengers experience and engage with the airport, as Ian described:
"You've caught their attention, right? Now is the opportunity where your screens, your content, your strategy, your vision, can influence their behavior...do we need them to go sit at the gate where they're not spending any money or do we need them to go to the big beautiful bar?"
Contact us for new ways to capture attention, drive engagement, and influence passengers.
