Electronic kiosks are now showing up at many more places than the neighborhood bank and are dispensing more than just $20 bills. Kiosks in the marketplace today are like ATMs on steroids, vending out movies and airline tickets, renting cars, reshaping restaurants, and even providing a way for jailed criminals to get funds while doing time. More and more, they are doing the jobs that once relied solely on human interaction.

North American kiosk machine sales are expected to grow to $828 million from $484 million over the next five years, according to research by industry analyst firm Frost & Sullivan. Worldwide revenues are projected to reach $2.67 billion in 2013.Companies such as Hewlett-Packard Co., which operates a printer design and engineering facility in Vancouver, have started selling self-service electronic kiosks that offer order entry, ticketing, bill payment, check-in, maps and directions, as well as human resource applications.

Movies from a box

One of the more mainstreams kiosk services is DVD rentals. Watching a movie at home used to require a trip to the video store, a walk through the aisles and a clerk to ring up the rental. New releases can now be rented from a machine with the swipe of a credit card.

Self-service DVD-dispensing kiosks are found at most grocery stores. The company DVDPlay has seven such machines at Vancouver Safeways and one in Camas. All local McDonald’s restaurants along with an Albertsons at 5000 E. Fourth Plain Blvd. are outfitted with Redbox movie kiosks.

Redboxes are fully automated machines that hold 500 DVDs, representing more than 100 new releases. Redbox is co-owned by Bellevue-based Coinstar Inc. and McDonald Ventures, a subsidiary of McDonald’s.

Restaurant applications

Matt Hadwin, owner of the Clark County McDonald’s locations, said he was given a yearlong trial with the machines, which is just about up. McDonald’s owners do not get revenues from DVD rentals, but they do pay the utility cost to run the machines.

“When the idea was first pitched to myself and my peers, everyone was skeptical,” Hadwin said.

Once the trial period is up, Hadwin has to decide whether to invest in a kiosk contract to get a piece of the rental revenue, to agree to leave the machines in his restaurants under the current setup, or have them removed. Right now, he said he doesn’t imagine getting rid of them.

“Is it creating more customer visits for me? I think you’ve got to say yes,” he said.

Hadwin said McDonald’s is now also trying out kiosks that customers can use to order food at select locations. It’s an idea being tested by other chain restaurants, including Carl’s Jr. and Jack in the Box. According to a case study published by Self-Service World, a Kentucky-based online provider of information about the self-service technology industry, average check sizes went up 15 percent to 20 percent at Carl’s Jr. when customers used a touch-screen kiosk to order for themselves.

Beyond dining

While the restaurant industry is just beginning to explore the use of kiosks, the machines have been implemented in a variety of ways in the marketplace. OfficeMax launched ink-filling-station kiosks in 2006, allowing customers to refill empty printer toner cartridges. The U.S. Postal Service offers electronic stations where customers can mail packages by following directions on a kiosk screen. Two Vancouver 7-Elevens have kiosks allowing customers to use an ATM that also offers check cashing, money transfers and the ability to pay bills. Coinstar also operates machines inside local Fred Meyer stores, among other locations, that will take small coins and exchange them for cash. Portland International Airport offers a variety of kiosk experiences, including automated boarding pass dispensers and car rental machines.

Kiosk costs

An interactive kiosk with a touch-screen LCD monitor, a standard enclosure, a printer and software can cost $5,000 to $10,000, according to BuyerZone, an online marketplace for business products. Upgrades such as higher-quality screens and customized software can add another $10,000 to $20,000 to the price.

One of the more unique kiosk applications is being utilized at Clark County Jail. Last year, the jail installed an ATM-like kiosk that allows family and friends to deposit money directly into inmate accounts, which can be used for co-pays on medical visits and medicine, as well as on a menu of commissary items such as snacks, beverages and clothing.

Keefe Commissary, based in St. Louis, Mo., proposed the kiosk for the jail. Darin Rouhier, Clark County Sheriff’s Office finance manager, said it’s one of only two he knows of regionally — the other is at a jail near Corvallis, Ore. — and it gets used around 150 times a week. Rouhier said he’s taken at least a half-dozen calls from other jails around the West Coast interested in how the system works.

He said in this age of convenience and technology, people expect prompt service wherever they go, including the jail.

“It’s certainly the direction of the future,” he said. 

Paul Craig covers business for The Columbian. He can be reached at 360-735-4520 or paul.craig@columbian.com.