Audience behavior around large interactive cylindrical screens

Non-planar screens, such as columns, have been a popular means for displaying information for a long time. In contrast to traditional displays their digital counterparts are mainly flat and rectangular due to current technological constraints. However, we envision bendable displays to be available in the future, which will allow for creating new forms of displays with new properties. In this paper we explore cylindrical displays as a possible form of such novel public displays. We present a prototype and report on a user study, comparing the influence of the display shape on user behavior and user experience between flat and cylindrical displays. The results indicate that people move more in the vicinity of cylindrical displays and that there is no longer a default position when it comes to interaction. As a result, such displays are especially suitable to keep people in motion and to support gesture-like interaction.