EUROPE NEWS

UK: Capital investment in London's digital future

Late last month, the great & the good of OOH media gathered aloft the Walkie Talkie building, cocooned within London’s highest urban greenhouse, to hear JCDecaux announce their vision for the future of digital outdoor advertising in London.

The chosen location was not only designed to impress (and impress it did) but also served to epitomise JCDecaux’s market leading position as well as remind guests of the majesty & splendour of London when observed from such an advantageous vantage point.

The vision was imparted ‘classically’ through JCDecaux’s passionate and persuasive owner/elder statesman Jean Francois Decaux and ‘digitally’ via the mother of all HD screens.

Monsieur Decaux talked of innovation being part of the company’s DNA and integral to the success of the business now & in the future, poignantly reinforcing the fact that JCDecaux are in it for the ‘long game’. He pledged ‘we will make London the Silicon Valley for digital Out-of-Home’ through the creation of LDN, the London Digital Network – a £50m investment programme that will see a 10-fold increase in the footprint of digital bus shelters in the Capital, from 100 to 1000.

A larger than life digital animation offering a cinematic 360 degree view of London brought the vision to life, as key London facts & stats where fired at the audience as they were taken on a head spinning virtual tour of the key London retail zones where a large number of these new screens will be located. As well as creating a digital network of scale, giving brands the opportunity to dominate London’s streets, JCDecaux is taking a data led approach to enable advertisers to better target the right audience with the right message, in the right place, at the right time. This will be made possible via their supply side platform SmartBrics which is already used to deliver epos driven, contextual messaging on Tesco’s in-store advertising screens. In this case, campaign optimisation will be driven from a combination of data sets, including CACI retail spend data, Route audience data, social media feeds as well as JCD’s Connected Commuter insight panel.

All in all, the event was a very impressive display of category leadership & a clear signal to the market that change is afoot.

So, is Smart Broadcast the future of DOOH? - building large scale digital networks supported by ‘intelligent’ data driven control centres that deliver optimised campaigns for advertisers. It certainly paves the way for the much lauded programmatic trading model, however, it is a costly blueprint for others to follow, requiring considerable upfront investment and a patient approach to return on investment. Where traditionally OOH has had a long tail of disparate media owners/landlords, the increased entry costs to ‘play’ in DOOH will invariably result in greater market consolidation as we have already seen over the course of this year. It is also very likely that a few new players emerge and disrupt the market - digital first businesses, without the traditional baggage.

One things for sure, those traditional OOH media owners that invest heavily in digital transformation will survive and those that don’t run the risk of becoming anachronisms in a digital world.

The clear take out from JCDecaux’s London launch event is that they are not planning to fade into the background or be usurped by one of the monolithic new media businesses. They are investing in digital to ensure they are as relevant today as they are tomorrow.

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Switzerland: Clear Channel to take over VBZ advertising displays as of 2017

Clear Channel Switzerland has been awarded the contract for a major part of the advertising displays at bus and tram stops in the VBZ network (Zurich’s public transport system).

As of 2017 Clear Channel is to take over the marketing of a major part of the approximately 1200 advertising displays at VBZ bus and tram stops. VBZ had put the contracts for poster sites up for public tender in several lots, covering bus and tram stops as well as depots and garages.

Clear Channel’s bid has now been declared the winner. Clear Channel takes a very positive view of VBZ’s tendering process. The process was open to all providers in the market, giving it a highly competitive character.

The poster sites are at extremely attractive locations, with above average traffic frequency, and beside the most heavily used city roads.

Jürg Rötheli, Vice-President Central Europe and CEO of Clear Channel Switzerland is delighted at the outcome: “Coming after our successful bids for digital displays and rotating backlit pillars in the city of Zurich this represents a further milestone in the realization of our strategy to offer customers the most attractive, tailor-made advertising solutions.”

Norway: Oslo metro digital signage sidesteps power shutoffs

Clear Channel Norway has installed Matrox Maevex H.264 encoders and decoders to deliver advertising content on 176 digital screens in three stations within the Oslo metro system. The distributed digital signage is no longer impacted by metro-run system tests that abruptly shut off the power.

Comprising six lines and 100 stations, the Oslo metro system is used by over 80 million travellers each year. While considered prime advertising real estate, the metro system presented several challenges for integrator

Clear Channel Norway to deliver digital signage in three metro stations. Clear Channel Norway was tasked with setting up a network to provide the content to 176 65in screens already installed in the digital stations across the Oslo metro system. The original set-up had the screens connected to PC players housed in machine rooms. Signals would be transmitted via HDMI extenders, but emergency power shutdowns for system tests would leave the screens blank even after the connections had been re-established, leading to lost advertising revenue.

“The environment and the operations were quite difficult for us to handle. We needed to find a different solution to transmit the signal from the player to the screens,” said Jonas Michael, head of digital development and operations at Clear Channel Norway.

A temporary fix involved having to regularly access the screens to reconfigure the HDMI extenders – a near-impossible undertaking given the screens were located in between tracks. As a result, Clear Channel Norway sought a stable, cost-effective solution that would not be impacted by abrupt disconnections, require on-site maintenance, or interfere with passengers and metro workers.

Maevex was the first choice for Clear Channel Norway, as the product specifications for its AV-over-IP devices met the requirement to distribute high-quality, up-to-1080p60 video and audio at low, user-defined bitrates.

Full article here

UK: The endless opportunities of DOOH

Enhancements in digital technologies and their integration into Out-of-Home have allowed brands to interact with their consumers in many creative ways. Advertisers can now display dynamic content on digital screens to interact in real time with their consumers. They can adapt their creatives according to the daypart or to a particular event.

DOOH allows brands to engage with the hyper connected audience on the move. At Exterion Media, we are constantly developing our international digital portfolio to ensure brands are engaging their audiences in the most relevant and effective way possible. Through our extensive opportunities, we are at the forefront of exciting innovations. We reach a very diverse audience throughout the main European markets.

The Entrance Landmark at Westfield London is an example of one of Exterion Media UK’s impactful assets as it is the largest advertising format in any UK retail location. It provides brands with a dual solution for creative messages through both digital and static offerings.

The high definition digital screen along with impressive print can create huge standout and brand awareness. This is a great way to engage with the affluent and hyper connected shopper.

Full article here

UK: Samsung OOH account heading to Posterscope

Samsung, one of the biggest out of home advertisers in the UK with a spend of around £70m, is believed to be moving its OOH account from Interpublic’s Rapport to Dentsu Aegis-owned Posterscope. It’s a big blow to Rapport which lost Tesco to WPP’s Kinetic 18 months ago.

Most of Samsung’s media is handled by Publicis Group’s Starcom. Publicis doesn’t have a big OOH specialist agency and recently switched its allegiance from Kinetic to Starcom.

The powers that be at Samsung have evidently decided some tidying up was required, doubtless with pressure from Starcom. Rapport, which is acknowledged to have performed strongly on Samsung and its other, remaining, big account Sky, has suffered from the dire performance of IPG’s two media agencies – UM and Initiative in the UK. Without a regular feed of business from media agencies it’s hard to compete with likes of Kinetic and Posterscope.

As for Postercope, now helmed by former McCann CEO Stephen Whyte in the UK, it’s bounced back strongly from the position it found itself in when Kinetic’s Eric Newnham set up rival Talon (aligned to Omnicom) with a raft of former Posterscope executives and won large chunks of its business.

(This is an amended version of an earlier story).

Update

Rapport, without confirming the switch, tells me that the original headline figure of a £70m account is fiction, it’s more like £7m. Also that the principal in the arrangement was Cheil, with work outsourced to Rapport.

A bit tail and dog it seems to me, but there you go. In essence, according to numerous sources, it seems to be a deal with Starcom. Media accounts seem to move these days on a kind of geopolitical basis (and the offer of lower prices, of course). What a world.

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AMERICAS NEWS

USA: Outdoor Advertising Companies Post Improved Revenue in Third Quarter

As other traditional media categories suffer ad declines, out-of-home has been fairly resilient Financial results from outdoor advertising companies this quarter provided further evidence that marketers are continuing to invest in billboards, transit ads and digitals signs.

Outfront Media and Clear Channel Outdoor both reported organic revenue growth in their domestic outdoor businesses and projected further growth in the fourth quarter.

Lamar Advertising, whose displays are in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico, also posted higher sales and profit for the period. While most types of traditional media categories have suffered advertising declines as consumers increasingly spend more time on digital platforms, out-of-home media has been fairly resilient.

The outdoor advertising industry has touted its ability to reach mass audiences that can’t skip over the ads as well as the conversion of some billboards to digital displays in its pitch to Madison Avenue.

Outfront Media, formerly known as CBS Outdoor, reported its billboard business in the U.S. returned to growth, edging up 0.3% for the third quarter thanks to stronger demand from both national and local advertisers as well as improved results in key markets such as New York and Los Angeles. The company’s U.S. organic revenue rose 2.8%, driven by nearly 9% growth in its transit business. International organic revenue was down 0.3% for the period.

Chief Executive Jeremy Male said the company’s transit and billboard businesses in the U.S. so far in the fourth quarter “are showing improved growth” compared with the third quarter.

Full article here

USA: Clear Channel Outdoor may sell some US billboard assets -sources

Billboard operator Clear Channel Outdoor is exploring the sale of assets in some U.S. markets that could be worth at least $800 million, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Clear Channel Outdoor has hired boutique investment bank Moelis & Co to advise on the potential sale, the sources said on Tuesday. They asked not to be named because the matter is private. Clear Channel Outdoor did not return a request for comment. A spokesman from Moelis declined to comment.

Clear Channel may be looking to divest its holdings in cities such as Las Vegas, Seattle, Portland, and Bentonville and Fort Smith, Arkansas, one of the people said, adding that the regions where assets may be sold could change. Potential buyers include Outfront Media, Lamar Advertising REIT Co, GTCR LLC, which bought Fairway Outdoor Advertising last year, and France's JCDecaux SA .

Clear Channel wants to sell the assets to help pay off some of the $20.6 billion in debt held by its parent company, iHeartMedia, which was taken private in 2008 by buyout firms Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners for $19 billion, the people said. Clear Channel generates revenue from brands that rent out space on its digital and static billboards, which can be found on highways, buildings and other outdoor spaces.

The assets Clear Channel is looking at selling generate estimated annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $60 million to $70 million. Billboards are holding their own with local audiences and advertisers even as attention slips for other sorts of regional advertising, such local newspapers facing circulation declines or TV commercials that viewers increasingly are able to skip.

Reuters reported last year that Clear Channel Outdoor tried to sell its European assets in a deal potentially worth more than $2.5 billion, but then put the process on hold due to the weakened euro. About 88 percent of Clear Channel Outdoor is owned by iHeartMedia.

The rest of Clear Channel Outdoor is publicly traded with a market capitalization of about $2.18 billion. Its shares have tumbled more than 45 percent this year due to lost market share to competitors and concerns about its parent company's performance, analysts said.

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USA: Rishad Tobaccowala Pinpoints the Beginnings of a Tectonic Change in Marketing

Publicis Groupe's chief strategist knows what to do about it, too

Attendees at the Digital Place-Based Advertising Association's annual Video Everywhere Summit in New York couldn't have known their minds would be blown an hour in. Expecting the usual stats and examples of successful out-of-home digital video stories, instead they got a 10,000-foot POV from one of the industry's great thinkers.

Rishad Tobaccowala, chief strategist at Publicis Groupe and known Zen master of the agency world, made great use of his 10-minute slot by identifying the year marketing was turned upside down, then offering ideas on how to think about successful marketing today and in the future.

After establishing that the three drivers of change in marketing and communications are globalization, demographic shifts and digitization, Tobaccowala pointed out that the increase in processing power in smartphones—today's phones have greater processing power than all the computers in the first space shuttle, he noted—has empowered consumers like never before, turning them into veritable Davids with slingshots to marketers' Goliaths.

Tobaccowala noted that in 2007, two things happened that gave consumers the slingshot: the iPhone was first released and Facebook went from .edu to .com. That's when people were given the power, as well as the platform, to speak their minds at any time. And no one, at least not Apple's competition in the smartphone field—Nokia and Blackberry at the time—saw it coming. "They didn't take Apple seriously … and look at what's happened," said Tobaccowala.

Ultimately, Tobaccowala noted that the inevitability of change is hard for many to accept. "Change sucks," he declared. "The more you want things to stay the same, the more they will have to change."

He wrapped up his speech (no slides, no video, and yet the audience was rapt) with a few changes he said need to happen:

1. The title CMO needs to be done away with. Chief marketing officers need to become chief facilitating officers.

2. Marketers need to stop advertising—they need to offer utility. "People don't want to see your stupid message," he said (clearly implicating himself in his message as much as the audience).

3. Video will indeed be everywhere, but he encouraged marketers to look more at the YouTubes and Netflixes of the world than the CBS's or NBCs. "The future more often comes from the slime than the heavens," he said.

4. Owning data is an obsolete idea. The secret of success with data is how to access it and use it.

5. Mobility: "Where you are is just as important as who you are."

6. Finally, one thing all marketers need to remember: "In a silicon world, we are still talking to carbon life-forms." In other words, be human and tell stories.

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USA: As Out-of-Home Ad Sales Grow, MDC Launches EnPlay

Startup leverages digital, traditional outdoor messaging

Seeking a foothold in the fast-growing out-of-home advertising space, MDC Media Partners has launched EnPlay Media, a standalone, technology-focused OOH communications company.

EnPlay is led by partners Lauren Barbara, Connie Garrido and Melissa Lerner, and initially works for MDC clients including AMC Networks, Audible, Arby's, Timberland and Vans. The leadership team previously worked together at Aegis Group's Posterscope, where Garrido served as Americas CEO from 2010 to 2014, and Barbara and Lerner held senior management roles.

Martin Cass CEO of MDC Media Partners, originally brought Garrido aboard with the notion of buying an existing OOH practice. But, after due diligence, they decided it made more sense to build a practice from the ground up.

"This was a very logical step for us," Cass said. "At the core of MDC is creativity, and OOH provides a wonderful canvas to express yourself." The unit will help clients fashion cutting-edge campaigns, often across two screens, combining OOH and mobile media for maximum impact, Garrido said.

EnPlay will handle planning and buying chores, working with MDC sibling shops for content development. "Things get complicated in the media landscape," she said, "but we're small enough to be nimble." And they plan to bring in partners like Vistar Media to help make OOH buys more targetable and predictive. Garrido explained how it works: "Suppose a client is looking to reach trendsetters in New York.

EnPlay is able to leverage their technology and data assets to build a custom audience based on relevant physical world behaviors, like visiting certain stores and restaurants. Enplay has created a solution for clients to programmatically activate media to reach these custom audiences across digital out-of-home, traditional out-of-home, and even mobile based on consumers' movement patterns."

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USA: $1 Billion in Advertising Sold Through DOmedia

DOmedia, the largest marketplace for out-of-home (OOH) media, announced today that it has powered over $1 billion in transactions.

The firm reached this milestone by bringing to market the first demand-side platform (DSP) and supply-side platform (SSP) for OOH media. DSPs and SSPs have driven major advancements in digital advertising. DOmedia is betting their suite of cloud-based applications will do the same for the OOH market. “Technology allows advertising buyers and sellers to eliminate redundancy and focus on data-driven decision making,” says DOmedia CEO Ken Sahlin.

“Our software makes that possible in out-of-home by eliminating the burden of fragmented inventory and non-standard data.” DOmedia offers a single source for inventory data from over 1,000 U.S. OOH advertising vendors. Approved vendors can begin receiving RFPs and RFQs just by listing their inventory on the site. The full suite of tools from DOmedia allows a vendor to take a sale from quote to contract and deliver proof-of-performance within a single program. “In our experience the DoMedia contract is one of the most ‘friendly’ in the business,” says Lamar Advertising Company Director of National Sales, Monica Robinson.

“They are laid out in a logical manner and include all the important information needed by our contracting staff.” Monica says the ability to send contracts with data from the Traffic Audit Bureau for Media Measurement (TAB), which provides ratings for OOH media, is one of the things she appreciates most about DOmedia.

The rise of big data in digital advertising has increased the pressure for agencies and media vendors to deliver similar tools for traditional media. DOmedia’s sophisticated targeting, mapping and analytics rely on TAB data along with a number of other 3rd party data sources. “We have built a robust and powerful methodology to measure OOH ratings,” says TAB President Kym Frank. “By making data more available to agencies, we are improving the attractiveness of OOH advertising to brands.”

Full article here

AUSTRALIA NEWS

Australia: oOh! set to engage flyers with new digital TV network at national airport baggage carousels.

Australia’s only national provider of airport advertising, oOh!media, today announced it has launched ‘Collect & Connect TV,’ a new digital advertising network reaching flyers at airport baggage carousels across Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.

The latest phase in oOh!’s extensive digital strategy, ‘Collect & Connect TV’ offers the networked reach of 44 screens capable of full motion animation and audio content at baggage carousels across all capital city airports.

It will provide the flexibility to run high definition 15 to 60 second TVC spots in standard, widescreen or modified format, equipped with sound capabilities. oOh!’s Group Director of Fly!, Robbie Dery said ‘Collect & Connect TV’ will reach more than 70 per cent of flyers within airports nationally.

That’s a total of 3.7 million flyers per month.

“’Collect and Connect TV’ taps into an audience that we know has an average of 12 minutes dwell time in front of screens waiting for their bags to arrive when they get off their flight.

“This new digital network entertains and engages what is essentially a captive audience with contextually relevant real time updates and interesting content intertwined with advertising opportunities. “We are offering advertisers full TVC capability to an audience that we know is growing and where the advertising cannot be switched off,” Mr Dery said.

Collect & Connect TV has launched with Roadshow Films Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 release as well as ANZ. ‘Collect & Connect TV’ is available across six terminals: Sydney (Qantas), Melbourne (Qantas and Multi-airline), Brisbane (Qantas and Multi-airline) and Perth (Qantas).

AFRICA NEWS

South Africa: What’s up with OOH in Africa?

One thing is clear, OOH in Africa is evolving rapidly. As it develops, it no longer just covers roadside (billboards, wraps), retail/store media, moving transit (buses, taxis), stadium media, static transit media (ranks, airports) and activations but has also moved into digital (DOOH) and mobile.

The ways in which data is considered, gathered and analysed is changing with the times. At the recent Pan African Media Research Organisation (Pamro) conference in Dar es Salaam in August, Lyn Jones, group marketing manager of Continental Outdoor Media, posed the question of how to establish a uniform, harmonised and standardised currency for OOH in Africa. Much of the South African OOH research studies from the past have been fragmented, inconsistent and disjointed.

This has been aggravated by poor samples, lack of continuity and very expensive isolated surveys that get shelved or are forgotten after one year. “One of the major inhibitors of OOH advertising adoption has been the lack of tools to measure audience and campaign effectiveness compared with other types of advertising,” said Jones.

Yet, despite this, senior delegates of the highest calibre from all over the world descended upon Tanzania at Pamro. “Something is happening here,” says Terry Murphy, marketing and marketing services executive at Primedia Outdoor, “there’s a lot more going on in Africa than you might think.”

Classic billboards take the cake

Some of the latest data reveals that DOOH is growing exponentially around the world and is currently on trial in Sub Saharan Africa to evaluate cost-effectiveness. In Jones’ view, this area will see significant growth and account for 30% of OOH revenues by 2018 in Africa. Yet, classical OOH mediums will still offer advertisers opportunities to make a strong impact.

Jones reiterated that traditional roadside billboards are still the most popular form of outdoor advertising, ahead of traditional billboards at shopping centres, street furniture and transit advertising.

She said, “Outdoor generally comprises of between 20 and 25% of ad-spend, ahead of print but behind radio and TV.” The PwC Continental Outdoor study 2014 showed that urbanisation is still the key growth driver for OOH infrastructural growth. In her talk, Jones cited some statistics which showed urban outdoor advertising reach over a seven day period in some African countries.

The results were: Zambia 63%, Angola 67%, Botswana 85%, Zimbabwe 77%, South Africa 74%, Tanzania 68%, Malawi 66% and Mauritius 72%. “We’ve also done research that indicates that overall reach increases when campaigns are rotated,” says Jones. However, unrotated campaigns build more frequency, so there is a trade off between reach and frequency.

Full article here

ASIA NEWS

Singapore: Clear Channel expands digital OOH offerings

Clear Channel Singapore is launching its latest state-of-the-art technology with a seven-fold expansion of its digital six-sheet inventory.

At present, Clear Channel offers high definition digital panels situated in prime locations, reaching out to city dwellers. The expanded bus shelter networks will light up Singapore skies with the 75-inch digital screens and will be deployed across the island. With effect from the end of the year, brand owners can look forward to new ways to connect and engage with their target audiences.

Clear Channel will roll out additions that provide contextual advertising solutions. Embedded with a HD Camera, colour, gender and object recognition can be executed seamlessly. Beyond audience-triggered content, dynamic targeting messages can be activated based on weather, time, date, news and events. The touch screen functionality would also allow for an interactive and immersive digital experience.

The digital panels are capable of displaying real time information with updates or feeds sourced from social media platforms or directed web links. Meanwhile, new features such as beacons and speakers will be available in 2016. Clear Channel’s digital out-of-home offerings are targeted to provide its partners and brand owners exclusive capabilities on 13 November 2015 at the Singapore Flyer.

“We introduced Singapore’s first digital out-of-home bus shelter network – way back in 2012. Today, we introduced a seven-fold expansion of our DOOH network. Our Play inventory is powered by back-end technology that allows brands to ad-serve content effortlessly – be it dynamic, real-time messaging, gender recognition, colour recognition, footfall tracking, eyeball tracking, sound or touch – we contextualize content and make your campaign meaningful – with Play,” Kelly Khoo (pictured), chief executive officer of Clear Channel Singapore, said.

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