OAK BROOK Ill. Three McDonald’s franchisees have halted tests of technology that enabled guests to use cell phones, web-enabled handheld devices or laptops to request music or videos for in-restaurant entertainment, the Oak Brook-based chain indicated.
John O’Keefe, operator of a franchised McDonald’s in the Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Ill., said early in the test at his restaurant that the technology had contributed to a 17-percent increase in same-store sales. A call to O’Keefe seeking additional comment on the technology trial – the unspecified cost of which he reportedly split with franchisor McDonald’s Corp. – was unanswered as of press time.
Asked to confirm the end of the test, Danya Proud of McDonald’s Corp. underscored that no company restaurants had been involved and remarked, “This was technology being tested by a couple of independent McDonald's franchisees.”
McDonald’s Corp. representatives declined to answer when asked if the entertainment technology would be further tested or deployed.
Akoo International Inc. of Elmwood Park, Ill., supplied the m-Venue technology used in the test at O’Keefe’s Schaumburg unit and franchised McDonald’s restaurants in Rosemount, Ill., and St. Augustine, Fla. Andy Stankiewicz, Akoo’s director of public relations, confirmed the completion of the 120-day McDonald’s test of technology that he said enjoyed “extreme support” at the “grass-roots level” among franchisees familiar with it.
During the recent tests, McDonald’s guests used phones, PDAs and laptops to view online listings of digital content licensed by companies such as Universal Music Group and Sony Pictures. Customers selected the free entertainment they desired using their mobile devices and their choices were queued up for public play on video screens and speakers in the participating restaurants. Customers also could review printed lists of music and video options before requesting a selection via text message.
The sale of digital content to restaurant guests wanting to download music or video to their mobile device was not a part of the recent trial, but the technology ultimately will support such commerce, Akoo sources said.
