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Digital signage is a form of targeted advertising in which content and messages displayed on an electronic screen, or digital sign, can be changed without modification to the physical sign, typically with the goal of delivering targeted messages to specific locations at specific times. This technology is best thought of as narrowcasting which is a form of broadcasting but to a narrow audience, not to the general public. Digital signage offers superior return on investment, (ROI) compared to traditional printed signs. Digital signs may be scrolling message boards, LCD or plasma screens, electronic billboards, projection screens, or other emerging display types like LED screens that can be controlled electronically using a computer or other device, allowing individuals or groups to remotely change and control their content either at the source or via the Internet.

The content displayed on digital signage screens can range from simple text and still images to full-motion video, with or without audio. Some operators of digital signage networks, regard their networks as comparable to television channels, displaying entertaining and informational content interspersed with advertisements.

Digital signage is used for many different purposes:

1. Information – Examples include flight information in airports and wait-times for the next train.
2. Advertising Related to the Location to Uplift Sales – Examples include in-store promotions in a retail establishment.
3. Advertising by Third Parties – Examples include restaurant-based digital signage networks that sell advertising to local merchants/service providers and national advertisers.
4. Enhanced Customer Experience – Examples include digital signage in restaurant waiting areas to reduce perceived wait-time and recipe demonstrations in food stores.
5. Influencing Customer Behavior – Examples include post office digital signage that directs patrons waiting in line to automated stamp machines and retail digital signage designed to direct customers to different areas of the store, increasing the time spent on the store premises, (dwell time).
6. Brand Building – Where digital signage in video form is used as a part of the store décor to build a story around the brand .

Content scheduling and playback can be controlled by a number of technologies ranging from simple, non-networked media players that can output basic loops of MPEG-2 or AVI video to complex, multi player networks that offer control over many displays in many venues from a single location. The former is ideal for small groups of displays that can be updated via sneaker net, while the latter allows Digital Signage Network Operators like iCast to either push content to many players at once or have each player pull content from a server as needed.