Lyle Bunn, digital signage industry consultant, passed away on Tues., Oct. 9 from colon cancer at age 63 in Brighton, ON.
A true digital signage professional, one of Bunn’s last wishes was to let his friends in the industry know that it was his "great joy to be able to make such contributions to the industry, touching many individuals and organizations, since the inception of the digital signage industry” and that he hopes the industry receives ongoing success.
Bunn—whose passion for education was abundantly clear from his work in the industry—had been an adjunct faculty member of AVIXA (then InfoComm International) and, as recently as 2015, he was hosting digital signage roundtables with the association in Europe. Rachel Bradshaw, AVIXA director of program design, offered these thoughts: “Lyle was a passionate, generous educator who made the success of others his own. He believed in the power of this industry to connect people, and he gave endlessly of his own time and expertise to empower others to fulfill that promise. He will be dearly, dearly missed.”
Bunn had published over 400 articles on the various facets of the digital signage world, and received accolades galore as a result of his ongoing commitment to educate the industry. Bunn was named as one of the 11 Most Influential People in Digital Signage by Digital Signage Today, one of the Top 50 Influencers and Innovators by Sign and Digital Graphics Magazine, and in 2005 was the only individual named in the Top 10 Digital Signage List by Digital Signage Forum. Bunn was also the founder of the Center for Digital Experience.
One of his most beloved professional accomplishments was receiving an honorary "Doctorate of Digital Signage" from the Digital Signage Experts Group in early 2011.
“Lyle Bunn was an industry pioneer in preaching the gospel of digital signage. He saw early on what it would become,” said Alan Brawn, principal, Brawn Consulting, and director of the Digital Signage Experts Group. “He was a writer, a speaker, and a teacher of the art and craft of digital signage. It is not hyperbole to say that he was an original that influenced many lives. He will be missed.”
According to Chris Gibbs, Exponation (producer of DSE) president and COO, Bunn attended the first Digital Signage Expo in San Francisco in 2004, seeing the industry’s true potential, even back then. “He dedicated countless hours over the years to educate and advise DSE attendees, and was one of the kindest most sincere people I have ever met. I will miss that ear-to-ear smile and handshake every time we met.”
Ever the digital signage evangelist, Bunn was one of the first members to join the Digital Signage Federation. “With Lyle’s passing, I am reminded of the fragility of life and how short a time we are all really here," Digital Signage Federation (DSF) chairman Richard Ventura said. "Over the years, I’ve gotten to know Lyle, both as a person and as a member of our industry. He was ubiquitous in our industry, insatiable in his desire to learn and teach, and genuine in his enthusiasm and gentle manner. He will be missed and he will be remembered.”
A Life Remembered
Bunn influenced many in the professional audiovisual and digital signage industry. Below is a collection of thoughts shared by his friends and partners.
“Lyle Bunn’s presence in our industry will truly be missed. Lyle’s passion for digital signage was always refreshing as he was always excited to tell everyone about some new digital signage invention, company, or way of communicating information digitally that he was involved in. I will never forget his smiling face as it always brought a smile to my heart."
—Brian McClimans, Vice President of Sales, Americas and APAC, Peerless-AV
"Words fall short of describing this man. He was so much more than brilliant. He embodied the term ‘passionate’. He was always willing to give and to offer insight. He helped so many people knowing that there was no real path for any return on his investment.”
—Mike White, Enterprise Account Manager and Director of Business Development, Unified AV
“Lyle was a highly respected and influential personality in the digital signage business. I’m honored to say that he was a contributor to my personal success in the industry. Lyle was such an enthusiastic supporter of the digital signage industry. He often sent me words of encouragement supporting my personal success in this industry. He will be missed.”
—Angie Nalepka, Senior Manager of Digital Experience and Creative, Rogers Communications
"When I first started out creating a digital signage network in higher education, Lyle Bunn was one of a number of industry voices I reached out to for much needed insight. He was very kind to me, and we began several dialogs surrounding best practices, and those were wonderfully helpful. Then, when attending the Digital Signage Expos over the years, we would often have a cup of coffee or chat on the show floor to catch up on how we both were doing. He would often attend various higher education sessions I presented and would ask pertinent questions and offer salient points in the conversation. I will miss this gentleman's kind words and friendship."
—Spencer Graham, Business Development Manager for Higher Education, Real Digital Media
"Lyle was a dear friend and colleague of mine for many years, and he was a true innovator in the digital experience industry. As an educator, advisor, and consultant for many years, Lyle helped countless organizations embrace digital technology and ‘place-based media’ as he referred to it so eloquently. He was a mentor for me, and I learned so much from Lyle. Aside from his industry expertise, personally, Lyle was one of the kindest, most humble, and nicest people I have ever met. He will be truly missed by many and will long be remembered in our industry.”
—Marcos Terenzio, Director of Digital Creative Experience, Shikatani Lacroix Brandesign
