"World first" camera technology films thrill-seekers at Skegness Pleasure Beach
A new video system – believed to be a “world first” – has been deployed at a Skegness fairground to capture the joy and fear of thrill-seekers.
The technology, invented by Skegness man Stefan Wignell and technical co-founder Phil Gittins, is already gaining a lot of attention in the industry.
Since being installed at Bottons Pleasure Beach a few weeks ago, the videos it generated have been viewed by millions online.
Indeed, the duo say they believe their technology - which was “built from scratch” – represents a “world first” for the industry.
“ReplayOS is a fully automated on-ride video capture and delivery system,” explains Stefan. “It films every rider and delivers a personalised HD video directly to their phone, all within a couple of minutes of stepping off the ride. No app download, no kiosk queue, no staff required at any point in the process.
“The rider wears a wristband with a unique QR code. They scan it at a station to register. Cameras mounted on the coaster cars film the entire experience, and our system automatically matches the footage to the correct rider and sends them a text message with a link to preview and purchase their video. They pay on their phone, and the video downloads instantly.
“The entire process, from filming to editing to delivery to payment, runs autonomously, seven days a week. There is no human intervention at any stage.”
He adds: “The response from riders has been incredible. The screams, the laughter, the faces. That emotional connection is what drives both purchases and shares. We're just at the beginning of what this can become.”
Stefan is the founder of Sinarchie Media - a content and marketing agency based in Skegness. Speaking about how he had the inspiration for ReplayOS, he said: “It started quite organically. We were already working with Botton's Pleasure Beach on their social media content. As part of that, we were capturing POV videos on their roller coasters which were performing incredibly well online.
“That got me thinking. What if we could build a system that creates this content every single day, automatically, without anyone needing to be there? What if every rider could have their own personalised video, delivered straight to their phone, without any friction?
“I brought in Phil, my technical co-founder, and we went on a real journey of exploration. Working out how to make the system as friction-free as possible for ride operators and customers.”
Stefan says traditional on-ride photo and video systems are “expensive to operate”, and require dedicated staff. “You ride, you queue at a kiosk, you try to find your photo on a screen, you pay over the odds, and you walk away with a printed image or a download code you'll probably lose,” he said.
“ReplayOS removes all of that friction. And because it's video rather than a static photo, people actually want to share it, which creates organic marketing content for the park at zero cost.”
The technology is currently live at Botton's Pleasure Beach in Skegness, on their Rock'n Roller coaster.
"The results have exceeded our expectations,” adds Stefan. “In our first month, the system filmed over 8,000 unique riders, generated over 1,200 video purchases, and the content shared by riders has been viewed more than seven million times across social platforms, all with zero advertising spend and zero on-site staff.”
Speaking about the potential reach for the new system, he added: “We're currently in conversations with several park operators across the UK and we're looking at opportunities abroad as well. The model is proven, the technology is reliable, and the data speaks for itself.”
He added: “We believe it's a world first in terms of fully automated, end-to-end on-ride video delivery with zero human intervention.”