MediaPost | Digital Outsider

NCM Upfront, Screenvision Unveils Emerging Filmmaker Series

Fri, 17 May 2013 14:32:44 -0400

NCM is gearing up to launch FirstLook Sync, a new mobile app that allows moviegoers to interact with advertising and other content from the big screen using their smartphones.

After Slow Second Half In 2012, Global DOOH Picking Up In 2013

Sun, 12 May 2013 16:20:23 -0400

The digital out-of-home media marketplace grew at a nice clip in the first half of 2012, but then decelerated markedly in the second half of the year, according to the latest "Global Digital Out-of-Home Media Forecast 2013-17" from PQ Media. Happily, the growth rate appears to be picking up again in 2013, although PQ Media notes there are still a number of hurdles to be overcome.

Cinema Advertising Gets Interactive, Mobile

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 19:22:26 -0400

The two dominant cinema advertising networks in the U.S. are muscling up with new digital offerings, including mobile channels and lobby assets. Not coincidentally, all the excitement comes as they woo advertisers with upfront presentations touting the benefits of sight, sound and motion on the big screen, as well as their new digital channels.

China Will Drive Global DOOH Growth

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 16:52:03 -0400

Digital out-of-home media has been growing fast in the U.S., but the rate of growth in China is positively "blistering," according to the latest research from PQ Media, which sees Asia's largest country (and the world's second largest economy) driving global DOOH growth in coming years.

Quividi Powers Amscreen in Europe

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 17:17:52 -0400

Facial recognition technology, which made a big splash a couple years ago but has been slow gaining traction in the U.S., is advancing in Europe. This week Amscreen, which claims to operate Europe's largest digital media network, announced that it is will incorporate facial recognition technology from Quividi into its audience measurement. In addition to tracking engagement, Quividi tech will allow Amscreen to break down audience data by gender, age, date, time and volume.

Clear Channel Unveils Huge Screens At Denver Airport

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 16:28:26 -0400

Clear Channel Airports has installed four "video towers" in the Denver International Airport, the company announced this week. The spectacular displays consist of LED screens measuring 26 feet on the diagonal, mounted in four towers surrounding the airport's "Great Hall" elevator column, and will reach around 50 million passengers per year with advertising as well as useful information about the airport, Denver, and Colorado, according to DIA chief commercial officer John Ackerman.

SoloHealth Kiosks Coming To Safeway

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 17:58:39 -0400

SoloHealth is bringing its SoloHealth Stations -- interactive kiosks that provide users with free health screenings, personalized assessments, and health information, along with advertising, promotions and offers -- to 700 Safeway stores around the country, the company announced this week. The Safeway rollout is scheduled to begin in April.

MTA Rolling Out Digital Touch Screens In Public Phone Kiosks

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 17:44:00 -0400

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates one of the largest public transportation systems in the world, is bringing digital touch-screen displays to public phone kiosks in the New York City Transit network. The interactive kiosks, most of which are located in NYCT subway stations, will provide users with a variety of information via 47-inch touch-screen displays.

Phizzle Integrates Social Media Into DOOH Advertising

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 18:00:50 -0400

Digital out-of-home and social media go together naturally, especially in settings like sports events, where large audiences frequently consult digital displays to see the score and other game-related information, or watch entertaining content during downtime. Social media content from spectators, shown on digital displays in real time, can increase the audience's sense of community engagement, which is a central part of the enjoyment. With that in mind, Phizzle has unveiled a new product, Broadcaster iX Social, that enables digital signage in sports arenas and other big venues to integrate social media components into digital marketing campaigns.

AdSpace Brings NFC To 140 Malls

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 17:35:00 -0500

With their combination of retail, out-of-home signage, and face-to-face socializing, malls are natural venues for near-field communication, and AdSpace is helping 140 malls in its network ride the NFC wave through a partnership with Blue Bite, which builds and operates NFC platforms. The NFC installations, which should be active by April 15, are intended to help boost interaction with AdSpace's network of digital Smart Screens.

RMG Unveils ChalkboxTV

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 17:56:04 -0500

While the cost of digital out-of-home hardware has been dropping, it's still too pricey for many smaller businesses -- but that fact may change soon, thanks to RMG Networks, which unveiled a new digital signage product that can turn any ordinary TV into a DOOH display.

NCM Reports Growth In 2012

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 16:45:20 -0500

National CineMedia, one of two dominant cinema advertising networks in the U.S., saw total revenues increase 3.1% from $435.4 million in 2011 to $448.8 million in 2012, the company reported this week.

Towering Bikini Babes Stalk Las Vegas

Fri, 15 Feb 2013 17:08:02 -0500

Well, this brings a whole new meaning to "statuesque": to promote Sports Illustrated's 2013 Swimsuit Edition, the magazine teamed up with Lexus and Pearl Media to project massive 3D images of all 17 of this year's swimsuit models on the side of the Caesar's Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on Wednesday of this week.

Outcast Gets ABC Content

Fri, 08 Feb 2013 17:41:36 -0500

Outcast, one of several digital out-of-home networks targeting drivers at the gas pump, has struck a deal with ABC Entertainment giving it access to a variety of ABC content, including custom clips of "Jimmy Kimmel Live," "The View," and "The Chew."

Super Bowl Ads Debut In Cinemas

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 17:43:20 -0500

A number of big advertisers are choosing to debut their Super Bowl ads before the game -- but not on TV. Kia Motors America, Taco Bell, and E*Trade are all turning to cinema advertising to preview their Super Bowl spots; meanwhile, CBS is using a cinema ad spot to create buzz for its Super Bowl ad for "Two Broke Girls." All the ads are appearing as part of NCM Media Networks' FirstLook pre-show package of entertainment and advertising, where they are being highlighted in a special "Big Game Ad Showcase."

DOOH Gaining Momentum Around the World, Accenture Finds

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 17:56:19 -0500

espite continuing economic uncertainty, digital out-of-home networks are expanding around the world, often piggybacking onto big-ticket infrastructure projects, while new technology makes DOOH advertising more interactive and local governments look for new income streams from public media. That's according to a new report from Accenture Interactive, "Out of Home Landlords Venture into Digital Space," which forecasts a new wave of investment in DOOH in coming years.

JCDecaux Scores Big In Chicago

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 15:44:57 -0500

This week JCDecaux SA announced that it won a new 20-year contract with the City of Chicago in joint venture with Interstate Outdoor Advertising and its sister company, Foster Interstate. The contract calls for JCDecaux and its partners to build and operate 34 large digital billboards and 60 LED display panels along Chicago's busy expressways. The global outdoor advertising company says the contract will generate around $700 million in advertising revenues over this period, making it one of the biggest municipal outdoor ad programs in the U.S.

Microsoft Taps NCM, Zoom Partners with Town Sports, SoloHealth Bows Pay-per-Performance

Fri, 11 Jan 2013 17:35:19 -0500

f the rest of 2013 continues this way, the digital out-of-home business is going to have a busy year. The first full week of the new year saw a flurry of new partnerships and products, including a big custom content advertising push by National Cinemedia for Microsoft, the expansion of Zoom Media's network to include scores of Town Sports International venues up and down the East Coast, and the unveiling of a new pay-per-performance advertising model from SoloHealth, which operates interactive kiosks in health-related retail venues.

Ex-Posterscope Prez Sentenced to Four Months in Prison

Fri, 04 Jan 2013 16:47:47 -0500

Todd Hansen, 49, who served as president of Posterscope USA from 2004-2009, has been sentenced to four months in prison by U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff after pleading guilty in June 2012 to fraud and conspiracy charges related to his tenure at Posterscope. The court also decreed three years of supervised release, and ordered Hansen to pay restitution of $231,000 and a fine of $173,450.90.

Times Square Billboard Costs $3.6 Million a Year

Fri, 28 Dec 2012 12:42:30 -0500

New York City has a well-deserved reputation for having the biggest, bestest, fanciest, and most expensive version of everything, and this includes billboards. So it comes as no surprise that the owner of One Times Square is raking in over $20 million a year from renting digital billboard space. The Wall Street Journal dug up some public financial statements from the owners of One Times Square, who filed the documents as part of a refinancing deal, and discovered that the digital billboard rented by Dunkin' Donuts (displaying products, user-generated content from social media, and so on) costs the pastry titan $3.6 million a year.

Airport DOOH Space Heating Up

Fri, 21 Dec 2012 13:01:30 -0500

With a large amount of foot traffic from well-heeled consumers in a captive environment, airports are a natural choice for digital out-of-home video, and the marketplace has been heating up over the last year.

L.A. Digital Billboards Ruled Illegal

Fri, 14 Dec 2012 17:27:12 -0500

In a big reversal for Clear Channel Outdoor and CBS Outdoor, earlier this week an appellate court ruled that permits for 100 digital billboards around Los Angeles are void, because the L.A. City Council had no right to issue them under the city's own laws. This means that, barring some outside intervention by a higher court at the state or federal level, Clear Channel and CBS will have to dismantle the digital billboards.

Spectrio Taps Wovenmedia; Vector Joins DPAA

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 16:08:44 -0500

Spectrio, which specializes in video-based marketing, has chosen Wovenmedia to provide cloud-based video publishing support that will allow Spectrio to create and manage branded video channels for digital out-of-home display nationwide, including place-based networks reaching audiences in healthcare, automobile, and quick-service-food venues.

OnCampus Brings Digital TV To B&N College Book Stores

Fri, 23 Nov 2012 09:54:31 -0500

OnCampus Media has partnered with Barnes & Noble College Marketing to create a digital TV network consisting of over 800 screens at 400 Barnes & Noble locations at colleges and universities around the country.

Urinal-Based Captive Media Gets Funding

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 16:32:06 -0500

Well, thank goodness for that: urination-based digital out-of-home media got a vote of confidence with the announcement that Captive Media, a British startup that operates interactive displays linked to urinals in men's restrooms, has raised $700,000 of funding to help expand its network.

National CineMedia Revenues Rise

Fri, 02 Nov 2012 15:35:09 -0400

Cinema advertising continues to contribute to digital out-of-home's overall growth, with positive third quarter results from National CineMedia, the larger of two dominant cinema advertising networks in the U.S. However, NCM also cautioned that fourth quarter results might not be as strong, reflecting continuing economic uncertainty.

LA City Council Votes To Let Digital Billboards Stay

Fri, 26 Oct 2012 17:32:00 -0400

With its car culture, freeways, and numerous billboards, Los Angeles is often integral to outdoor advertising trends -- which has recently included the backlash against the "visual clutter" of outdoor advertising, with a particular focus on digital billboards. But after a six-year battle, the LA City Council reached an agreement that may be regarded as at least a partial victory for digital billboards.

Monster Media Gets Transactional in Airports

Fri, 19 Oct 2012 15:34:29 -0400

Monster Media, which operates interactive digital displays in high-traffic venues, is integrating transactional functions into its installations in airports, the company announced last week.

DOOH Spending Outpaces Total Advertising By 6-to-1

Fri, 12 Oct 2012 17:43:54 -0400

Everyone who follows the digital out-of-home advertising business knows it's growing fast, and now there are some firm figures for evidence, courtesy of the Digital Place-based Advertising Association. According to the DPAA, total DOOH advertising revenues grew 11.8% in the first half of 2012 compared to the same period in 2011; that's more than six times the growth rate for the media industry overall, which edged up 1.9% in the first six months of the year.

AdSpace Launches Clip'd For Mobile Coupons

Fri, 05 Oct 2012 15:08:46 -0400

The convergence of digital out-of-home video and mobile marketing is increasing the ability of both channels to reach consumers at the point of sales, as well as allowing marketers to measure the impact of DOOH campaigns more precisely. With these goals in mind, Adspace Networks has launched Clip'd, a platform for delivering mobile coupons to consumers in the retail environment.