The benefit of using today’s technology is about more than making a phone call, according to Miles Malone, who considers himself to be both an inventor and businessman.
It was 20 years ago when Miles started working with his father, Herman Malone, at Denver International Airport. The trailblazing business leader had long been grooming his son to take over the family business by having him manage major projects as he went into semi-retirement. When Herman passed in April 2021, Miles assumed the role of president at RMES Communications. As 2023 approaches, he is preparing to launch his father’s dream from when he started the business 48 years ago.
The African American-owned business focuses on revolutionizing the telecommunication industry in airports while at the same time building wealth in the community. The company installs and maintains digital kiosks that provide powerful comprehensive advertising platforms to millions of travelers and thousands of employees.
Miles believes the industry has allowed him to be creative. The internet kiosk, which was his first kiosk, was a booth where people could surf the internet and play games before the smart phone. The second invention was the free public payphone, but the coin and debit cards were removed and the screen became the revenue. People were able to make international calls. The free public phone was to keep the public phone relevant.
Now the company is taking out the old equipment and implementing upgraded services.
The company’s latest kiosk at the airport aims to provide passengers with a calming travel experience with less of the stress that often exist in busy airports. These state-of-the-art, comprehensive kiosks provide passengers with additional information, helping them to independently navigate and move around the airport. Located at 50 gates across all three terminals at DEN, the kiosks will save passengers time.
RMES, which employs 11 people, is moving forward with Denver International Airport’s Vision 100 in mind. Vision 100 is the airport’s strategic plan that will enable it to prepare for and reach 100 million annual passengers in the next 8 to 10 years. The plan will serve as a blueprint to align decision-making and enable accountability so the airport can thoughtfully prepare to serve passengers.
The company has a lot to offer in support of this vision considering it operates as a telecommunications consultant business and in engineering, accounting, research, and management services.
RMES’ latest technology is a natural progression from its early days of calling card machines, vending machines, and free public phones. The kiosk’s unique features include TTY/TDD for video relay services for the deaf and hearing impaired, a multilingual chat room, DEN Eats Order and Delivery, DEN information access options, DEN online marketplace, and health and wellness check applications.
What may appear to be a simple offering can turn out to help in a big way. For example, food delivery service to the gate is critical to alleviating congestion in the airport as it decreases the number of passengers waiting in line in the concession areas. Offering services for those with disabilities can help them move more confidently and independently throughout the airport.
Miles can see this kiosk being of use in other places, such as the convention center and transportation hubs like bus and rail stations.
Generations of Malone family members are working with RMES and are primed to take the family legacy to the next level. Miles believes that a real-life Wakanda is possible in terms of technological improvements and advancements.
He says that we are already on that path and speed that is going to be dictated when we are ready to use it. It is something that is going to allow people to utilize it like a blue tooth like a subscription or app.Those services are becoming more available and are letting people take advantage of the services without going to the kiosk.Â
RMES’ long-standing relationship with Clear Channel will provide businesses with services that give them opportunities to advertise in their network at a lower budget, according to Miles. He explains that the significance for Black-owned businesses is that it allows them the opportunity to gain access to an advertising market that until now has been competitively out of reach due to big corporations having a strong hold.
