packagePRINTING's Top 5 Stories in November

Between the talking wine labels powered by augmented reality, creative packaging from one of Netflix's most popular shows, and the latest innovations from a major press manufacturer, the month of November featured a variety of interesting packaging news. We tracked the top 5 most read (or viewed) items from last month and have outlined them below — just in case you missed them the first time around or want to check them out again.

1. Watch These Spooky Wine Labels Come to Life. Who says packaging can only be a physical product? In this video, we highlight how 19 Crimes, an Australian wine producer, has brought its labels into the digital world via augmented reality. As more brands experiment with and launch interactive packaging applications, it will be important for converters to know how they can get in on the ground floor of this burgeoning technology. This is one of the coolest examples of interactive packaging we have seen yet!
2. Heidelberg Details Key Trends for Packaging’s Future. During Heidelberg's Packaging Days event on November 8-9, Heidelberg board member Stephan Plenz outlined some of the top trends impacting the packaging industry. In addition to pointing out what the latest trends are, Plenz offered information on how printers can ensure they are prepared as these trends begin to impact the industry.
3. Netflix's 'Stranger Things' Packaging Entices Consumers to Buy DVDs Because … Nostalgia. At first glance, it may seem odd that Netflix, a video streaming service, is even selling its shows in DVD format. But, when the first season of hit show 'Stranger Things' did hit the shelves, it managed to implement some key nostalgic attributes that play off the show's 1980s setting into its packaging. Primarily, the DVD box is designed to look like a well-worn VHS package.
4. Heidelberg’s Packaging Day Highlights Game-Changing Primefire 106 Technology. This article brings us back to Heidelberg's Packaging Days, at which the company's Primefire 106 hybrid press for the folding carton market was demonstrated. We've seen hybrid technology make a big splash this year in the label market, but the Primefire 106 appears poised to bring the technology to the folding carton world.
5. 'Predicting the Future' with Software. This article, which also appears in the November issue of packagePRINTING magazine, details the really cool advancements in 3D prototyping and packaging design software. Not only that, it includes commentary from a packaging designer at Nike about how the sporting goods and apparel company is using software to design its packaging.