News Release

Thousands of Fresh Faces to Light Up Broadway

No Acting Skills Required: New, Interactive Sign Offers New Yorkers and Tourists

4 January 2002

For decades people from around the world have imagined starring on Broadway. Now, thanks to one of the newest additions to the Times Square skyline, the HSBC Bank USA sign, thousands will realize their dreams of Broadway stardom when their face appears on Times Squares first interactive sign.

Debuting on December 31, 2001 and open to the public on January 2, 2002, the 3,328 square foot HSBC sign is one of Times Squares largest. It is connected to an interactive street-level kiosk, located in the Times Square Visitors Center. The technology allows individuals to have their smiling face projected from the sign, which towers hundreds of feet above Broadway at Two Times Square. The digital snapshots are incorporated into an animated display shown on the interactive big screen; images are enlarged to 40 wide by 52 high. Within minutes of entering the kiosk, an individual could look up and see him or herself involved in car chase or enjoying a relaxing gondola ride in Venice.

The interactive sign is a wonderful addition to the Times Square skyline," said John Carroll, executive vice president and head of marketing, HSBC Bank USA. "Times Square attracts visitors from every country, making it one of the most global places in the world. The interactive aspects of our sign reflects the global scope of Times Square and of HSBC."

Making the show possible will require 3,000 circuit boards, 7,000 power cables, and 2.75 miles of electrical wiring. For all the high-tech gadgetry, the process of getting ones face in front of a Broadway audience is actually quite simple.

Visitors to the Times Square Visitors Center enter a booth, smile before the camera, and within a few minutes, their likeness will be projected as part of an animated display for the entire Times Square area to see. Images are rotated throughout the day, between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., with previous snapshots re-run at other times.

HSBC has a long-term lease on the sign, ensuring an extended Broadway run for thousands of out-of-towners who come to New York with a smile on their face and a burning desire to grab their moment of fame high above the crossroads of the world.