FEPE Out of Home News 24th March 2016

FEPE Out of Home News 24th March 2016

FEPE NEWS

57th FEPE Congress in Barcelona: More Programme Announcements

Bookings for the FEPE Barcelona Congress are well ahead of schedule this year, reflecting the growing status of our event and its "must attend" position in the global OOH yearly diary.

We still have places and hotel rooms available but rooms get scarcer with each passing week. Next week will be announcing our gala and social evening locations.

Adding to the already announced speakers and panel members, Bob Wootton, Media Director of ISBA (at present) and Annie Rickard, CEO of Posterscope will both be on hand in Barcelona, and both will be bringing guest speakers with them for joint sessions.

More details to follow later. Other speakers and panel members already confirmed are Tom Goodwin, James Murphy, Michel Sara, Mark Boidman, Nancy Fletcher, Rosanne Caron, Noomi Mehta, Alan Brydon, Tim Bleakley and Charmaine Moldrich.

FEPE Board members including Matthew Dearden, Tom Goddard, Christian Schmalzl, Shaun Gregory and Brendon Cook will also be moderating panels and facilitating sessions along with FEPE President Antonio Vincenti.

The 57th FEPE Congress, which will be held between Wednesday June 1st and Friday June 3rd 2016 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Fira Center, Barcelona.

The link for the booking form can be found on the FEPE Homepage, at www.worldooh.org or email info@worldooh.org

Further details will be announced in future newsletters.

UK: 2016 Effie UK Finalists Announced

The International Advertising Association (IAA) is pleased to announce the 2016 Effie Awards UK Finalists.

As part of a strategic alliance with Effie Worldwide, Effie UK is proudly organized and presented by the IAA. The program aims to champion the practice and practitioners of marketing effectiveness in the United Kingdom. Call for entries opened in November 2015 and entries far surpassed estimates for the programs first year.

These cases were scored through two rigorous rounds of judging before the finalists were decided in early March 2016. Winners will be revealed at the Effie Awards UK Ceremony on 19th May 2016, held at the BAFTA 195 Piccadilly in London. Tickets are still available for purchase, secure your seat before it's too late! Congratulations to all the client and agency teams for making the finalists shortlist!

adam&eveDDB & John Lewis "Monty the Penguin"

adam&eveDDB & Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles "Working With You: The power of partnering with UK businesses"

AMVBBDO & Currys PC World "How an underdog won the 2014 football World Cup by changing the playing field"

Grey London & Sixt Rent a Car "Sixt: How 'Drive Smug' drives sales"

Grey London & McVitie's "A Sweet Solution To The Masterbrand Challenge"

JWT & Kenco "Rebooting Kenco by giving young Hondurans a way out of gang life"

Leo Burnett & NSPCC "We fought the law and we won: How the NSPCC changed the law with just £30,000"

TBWA London & Lidl UK "How surprising advertising yielded surprising results"

MullenLowe London & The Electoral Commission "Loss Aversion Trumps Voter Apathy"

MullenLowe London & MicroLoan Foundation "Rethinking the value exchange"

MullenLowe London & MicroLoan Foundation "Giving emotional value to a media space"

Wieden + Kennedy & Lurpak "Go Freestyle"

Wieden + Kennedy & Three "Sorry for the #holidayspam"

UK: Exterion Media selected for TfL’s Rail Advertising contract

The largest Out-of-Home contract in the world sets the foundation for a ground-breaking, data-driven partnership spanning 8.5 years

Transport for London (TfL) announced today that it has selected Exterion Media as its new commercial Partner for its Rail Advertising contract, offering innovative solutions to advertisers, maximising revenues and enhancing the customer experience.

“We are hugely excited to be working in partnership with TfL to create more dynamic opportunities to connect with the London Audience over the next decade,” explains Shaun Gregory, CEO, Exterion Media.

“Together, we have an extraordinary vision for the London Rail and Underground estate that will fundamentally change the look and feel of advertising in the Capital and the way that brands engage with consumers.”

The Partnership will launch on 1st October 2016 and benefits from significant investment that will fund the creation of a world-class digital estate, the introduction of new formats, a suite of premium displays in key stations, and ambiance enhancements to classic sites.

The contract award is part of TfL’s commercial development plans to maximise the revenue it generates from its assets to reinvest in the transport network for the benefit of Londoners.

The relationship calls for fundamentally closer ways of working together and changing the way Out-of-Home is bought and sold – from enhanced data and insights collaboration to joint selling that will create opportunities to reach London Rail and Underground passengers above and beyond paid for advertising.

Data and insight is integral to the strategy. This will enable the shift to an audience-led sell, and drive better efficiencies and effectiveness for brands.

Consumers will benefit through more relevant and engaging messages linked to improved targeting based on data and insight. These ensure the right message is delivered to the right audience at the right time. Customers will also enjoy an enhanced ambiance with attractive displays and improved placement, sympathetic to station environments.

Graeme Craig, Director of ‎Commercial Development at TfL:

“We had highly competitive bids from the leading outdoor advertising companies in the world, reflecting the quality and value of our estate. We are delighted to be able to confirm that Exterion Media is our new media partner. We believe this partnership can be a catalyst for transforming our stations and the wider industry. The new contract will move away from the traditional concessionary approach to working together to deliver innovation and value on the best station network in the greatest city in the world.”

Shaun Gregory, CEO, Exterion Media:

“Together, Exterion Media and Transport for London (TfL) have a bold vision for the London Rail and Underground estate that will transform the look and feel of advertising in the Capital, and the way that brands engage with consumers. We look forward to making this vision a reality using our expansive industry expertise, advanced data and insights, and our innovative network of partners, all of which has contributed to making this one of the best monetised, and most valuable advertising contracts in the world.

This is a ground-breaking new Partnership that will fundamentally change the way that Out-of-Home is bought and sold, unlock more dynamic opportunities to connect with the London Audience and enhance the customer experience. We will create a world-class digital estate, introduce new formats, a suite of premium displays in key stations, and enhancements to classic sites – all of which will lead to better consumer engagement for brands. We’ve invested significantly to make all of the above a reality from the start of the new concession, and we’re ready to go.”

UK: Outdoor Planning Awards shortlist revealed

Eighteen entries representing brands including Carlsberg, Currys PC World, Santander, Jameson, Microsoft and Camelot have been shortlisted in the Outdoor Planning Awards 2016.

Last year's winner, Google, is also in with a shout as a finalist in the category Best Use of Continuity and Brand Building. Celebrating the most effective and intelligent planning in the outdoor medium from the last 12 months, the awards are in their tenth year and run by Clear Channel and Campaign.

Entries were judged by an expert panel last week chaired by Campaign's global editor-in-chief, Claire Beale. Winners will be revealed at an awards evening on 5 May at the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel. Out-of-home planners and buyers will compete for a grand prize of £30,000 of ad space for their client, plus a luxury short break for two.

Individual category winners will each take home a £1,000 prize. The six award categories are: Best Use of Data and Insight; Best Use of Multi Media; Best Use of Digital; Best Use of Multiple Formats; Best Use of Innovation; and Best Use of Continuity and Brand Building.

For a full list of shortlisted entries, see the the Clear Channel Outdoor Planning Awards website.

UK: How to amplify programmatic’s new role in out-of-home advertising

Following the roll-out of programmatic buying in the out-of-home (OOH) space earlier this year, what are the opportunities for brands and who are the early adopters?

Programmatic ad buying has already revolutionised display advertising online and it is now set to transform the way out-of-home (OOH) media is bought and sold.

In January, the UK marketing body for the OOH industry Outsmart launched Space, a data management application that stores, categorises and standardises inventory in the UK market. Over half a million sites have a unique 10-digit code, allowing the inventory to be classified by location, environment and format, all of which is crucial in improving the infrastructure for programmatic development.

This is about “picking the best of digital and applying it to more traditional channels”, says Google head of media EMEA, Greg Smith. In doing so, “you create ads that are really useful”.

The internet behemoth has headed the queue of brands looking to test-drive some of the new technology.

Last year, Google started testing automated delivery at London’s Old Street roundabout – a site it has secured for a year – offering information rather than adverts, including the scores during the tennis at Wimbledon, warnings of upcoming traffic jams, and even the availability of fresh bread at a neighbourhood bakery.

At the end of 2015, Google began testing a “wholly programmatic OOH” approach on billboards, using its DoubleClick technology to power the screens.

Smith explains: “We fused the DoubleClick stack and the sales system to allow us to access inventory in real-time and then make individual decisions [regarding] which ads to show on which screens [and when].”

Providing relevant ads to a relevant audience “makes sense”, says Smith, especially in a channel such as OOH, which has what he describes as “dumb data”. The results of the trials were “really good”, he adds.

Others have been similarly quick off the mark. In February, charity Missing People launched a campaign to promote the Child Rescue Alert system with the aim of increasing the number of people registered to receive geographically targeted alerts to their phone when a high-risk child goes missing in their area (see Q&A, below).

Working with Grand Visual, which operates the OpenLoop ad-serving platform, the charity used live postcode registration data from the campaign and additional location and travel data to help tailor messages and keep communications targeted and relevant.

Full article here

UK: Exterion Media plans Clear Channel takeover

Exterion Media is planning a takeover bid for Clear Channel's international business, Campaign understands. One source claimed Exterion Media or its private equity owner, Platinum Equity, has already made an approach to Clear Channel International’s owners, although a second source maintained there has been no approach to CCl itself.

The catalyst for Exterion Media and Platinum Equity to consider a takeover move has been winning Transport for London's £1.1 billion out-of-home ad contract, the most valuable such deal in the world, on Thursday. However, Exterion Media and Platinum Equity are believed to have already done preliminary work on a possible bid approach before the outdoor company beat rival JCDecaux to win TfL’s business.

A merger between Exterion Media and its bigger rival CCI could create a powerful "number two" to JCDecaux outside the United States.

Exterion Media did not comment and referred questions about future plans to its owner. Platinum Equity’s London office did not respond to Campaign’s requests for comment in time for publication.

Clear Channel International did not comment. A spokesman for iHeartMedia, the parent company of Clear Channel International, in New York said: "As a policy, we don't comment on rumours or speculation."

Exterion Media is in a strong position after winning TfL’s eight-and-a-half-year contract because it guarantees a solid source of revenue. It is estimated to be worth £150 million a year now but industry observers have claimed it could be worth £250 million to £300 million a year by the end of 2024. Ian Whittaker, a media analyst at Liberum Capital, cited estimates that the contract is worth about £2 billion on the basis that TfL expects to receive about £1.1 billion.

It is not clear how much Clear Channel International is worth but it could be upwards of $2.5 billion (£1.8 billion) because it had operating profit before exceptional items of $261 million last year on sales of $1.6 billion. However, iHeart Media is heavily indebted and, although its private equity owners Bain Capital and Thomas H Lee Partners are thought to be keen to exit after buying Clear Channel in 2008, they have faced legal wrangles with bondholders.

Exterion Media is smaller than its rival with a turnover thought to be in the region of $800 million but that could rise to $1 billion following the TfL triumph.

Analysts have speculated that the TfL decision could prompt Exterion Media and Clear Channel International to consolidate regardless of whether Exterion Media or JC Decaux won the contract.

Source

AMERICAS NEWS

USA: The BIG Picture - TAB/OAAA Out of Home Media Conference and Expo

This year's theme, The BIG Picture, is an exploration of the vital role that out of home advertising plays in the cross-platform landscape.

To get The BIG Picture, we start by examining how campaigns are planned and budgets are allocated across media channels. We discuss the role that out of home plays in an integrated, strategic campaign, and review the successes and failures of other media efforts to address clients’ evolving needs. We handle topics like smart data, hypertargeting, programmatic, and how out of home can integrate with mobile and emerging technologies.

Out of home becomes a key part of cross-platform buying and selling when we think big and act big – when we get The BIG Picture -- April 18-20, 2016 at the legendary Boca Raton Resort & Club, 501 E. Camino Real, in paradise! (Boca Raton, Florida)

Join The BIG Picture conference co-hosts Helma Larkin, CEO at Posterscope US, and Scott Wells, CEO at Clear Channel Outdoor. Grow your professional network, learn, and have fun in an engaging environment designed to forge an understanding of the many changes and challenges shaping the advertising landscape.

General Sessions

TAB President Kym Frank delivers Out of Home Measurement Today and Tomorrow with a particular focus on Operation M.O.R.E., the state-of-the-art measurement system that is being developed at TAB, and OAAA President and CEO Nancy Fletcher gives The State of the Out of Home Industry Today and Tomorrow.

Mike Walsh Futurist and CEO of Tomorrow, an international consultancy with clients including many from the global Fortune 500, offers insights on audience behavior, digital technology, and marketing. Mike’s views are referenced in a wide range of international publications including BusinessWeek, Forbes, and The Wall Street Journal.

Media Analyst and CEO of Borrell Associates, Gordon Borrell, presents on seizing the full opportunity for out of home in local markets. Borrell ranks in the top two percent among Gerson Lehrman Group’s 150,000 consultants worldwide, and is a board member of The Local Media Association.

Gerry Graf, Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Barton F. Graf 9000, offers a creative perspective. Barton is one of the “14 Most Influential Agencies of 2014 in America” by Forbes, and Business Insider calls Graf one of “The 30 Most Creative People in Advertising” in 2015. Gerry is also a chief OBIE judge for this year’s OBIE Awards.

Stuart Rothenberg, Founding Editor and Publisher, Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report, presents insider views on hotly debated issues and how the future of politics is being shaped by our nation’s current newsmakers.

Matt Dowshen, President of PNYC, and Ted Florea, Chief Strategy Officer of PNYC, present the results of the industry’s successful Feel the Real campaign that ran earlier this year.

Ashwini Karandikar, Global President, AMNET (Dentsu Aegis Network) puts Programmatic and Smart Data in the frame.

Client presentations include Helen Katz, Senior Vice President of Starcom MediaVest Group, and Dennis Camlek, Senior Vice President of Turner Media Group. We will be adding more client speakers over the next couple of weeks, while returning to our main stage, we have the popular View from the C-Suite panel where out of home CEOs share their thoughts on industry issues.

All details are here

USA: OAAA Shares Real Data for Its 'Feel The Real' Campaign

Last fall the Outdoor Advertising Association of America won attention during Advertising Week with a set of very effective out-of-home ads for, well, out-of home ads. With billboard trucks attacking ad fraud online and precisely-placed signs targeting individual ad buyers by name, the campaign drove traffic to FeelTheReal.org, demonstrating the power of its own medium and simultaneously sowing doubt about betting everything on digital.

Now, with digital advertising and ad fraud each setting new records, the OAAA is building on its case with a white paper detailing what happened after the Advertising Week campaign.

More than 27,000 unique visitors came to FeelTheReal.org from Sept. 25 through Nov. 15, according to the paper, 73% from mobile devices and 25% from desktop computers. Fifty-seven percent were men and 43% were women, according to responses that visitors provided to a questionnare on the site. And about 40% said they were marketing professionals.

Eighty-five percent of those 27,000 people said they arrived at FeelTheReal.org after they saw an ad in the real world. The OAAA said it garnered $2.2 million in earned media during the first week of the campaign. It was able to place its ads in places like Time Square, on buses and elsewhere by working with its members.

"We knew from past studies that out of home advertising drives more engagement than TV, radio and print and we had a hypothesis that we can do targeted out of home advertising that would drive online traffic," said Ted Florea, chief strategy officer, Partners NYC, which created the "Feel the Real" campaign. "What surprised me most is that we had ads on Time Square, super highways, and 40% of those who came to the websites were marketing, advertising and media professionals. The degree in which we got a well qualified audience was greater than any of us hypothesised. That was our greatest surprise."

FeelTheReal.org greeted visitors by asking whether they were humans or robots, showing those who said "robot" a quote from the TV series "Mr. Robot" -- in binary code. After someone on Reddit cracked the code, FeelTheReal.org saw 15,000 additional unique visitors within 48 hours, the OAAA said. Only 10% of those worked in the media.

About 5% of those who visited the website said they were a robot, while 95% said human, according to the OAAA.

The OAAA was also contacted by unscrupulous vendors that promised to increase its site traffic at a cost of anywhere from $40 to $250 per 10,000 unique visitors, according to the paper.

OAAA agreed, but directed the brokers to send the traffic to mirror sites at FeelTheUnreal.org, FeelTheFake.org and FeelTheBots.org. "What we got back after a week can best be described as utter nonsense," the OAAA wrote in its white paper. Despite promises of traffic from the U.S., the views appeared to come from Russia, China, Indonesia and the Philippines. The mirror sites saw nearly 10,000 unique visitors a day, all of whom stayed on the site for exactly 18 seconds before bouncing, OAAA said.

Full article here

USA: Samsung shows off outdoor and transparent smart signage, audience measurement tools

Samsung has a new portfolio of digital signage solutions dubbed “SMART.” Shown off at the 2016 Digital Signage Expo, the devices include a high-brightness outdoor display, large-scale video walls and transparent OLED displays designed for retail, quick-service and fast casual restaurant (QSR), hospitality, corporate, entertainment and more.

Outdoor

Samsung OHD Series SMART Signage displays are outdoor devices with both commercial, drive-thru, and traffic uses. These devices feature IP56 certifications for brightness (up to 3,000 nit), a contrast range of 5000:1, and resistance to elements including dust, water and heat.

A HDBase-T connection underneath powers the content management platform, the System-on-a-Chip-based Smart Signage Platform and Samsung MagicInfo solutions for real-time message display. The OHD series also have energy efficiency and remote management in mind.

A separate series called OMD-K offers a panel kit for installing the display within a customized housing in an outdoor environment for weather durability.

Transparent displays

Starting in Q2, Samsung will ship its 55-inch ML55E Mirror and 55-inch TO55E Transparent OLED displays. These displays are meant for retail environments, the ML55E Mirror display has “reflectance” of up to 55 percent and a frameless design. Meanwhile the TO55E Transparent OLED Display offers brightness of up to 150 nit, transparency of up to 45 percent and color presentation of up to 100 percent Adobe RGB.

Analytics

In addition to hardware and display management, Samsung is offering an analysis tool called the MagicInfo Audience Measurement camera. It is able to record anonymous customer data when integrated with Samsung SMART Signage displays. Companies that take it a step further also and profile customers through face recognition technologies and engage.

Samsung Audience Measurement will also be available in Q2 2016.

Source

AFRICA NEWS

South Africa: Congolese advertising firm Sapro takes over SA giant

Congolese group, Sapro has positioned itself to become a continental advertising player after acquiring South Africa's billboard advertising giant, Global Outdoor Systems (GOS).

The buyout, brokered by RMB Corvest, was completed in December last year and was expected to remain under wraps until after Paul Obambi, CEO and founder of Sapro, had ended his tour of GOS's facilities around the continent.

An estimated $50 million surprise buyout offer for GOS, which operates in 16 African countries across Africa and manages about 6000 billboards, saw Sapro outdo several contenders.

Sapro is considered among the country's largest private companies, outside Republic of Congo's oil sector.

Before extending its reach to South Africa, the company, which also owns billboard and printing group - Media International - was already present in six countries. Competing bidders for the billboard and advertising group included international giants like Lamar Advertising, Clear Channel and JCDecaux, which succeeded its 2015 buyout bid for Continental Outdoor, one of GOS's serious competitors

Source

AUSTRALIA NEWS

Australia: APN Outdoor’s latest Headline Series, The Social Economy, hits the market

APN Outdoor has embraced the social media movement with their first 2016 Headline Series presentation released this week. The Headline Series is a collection of research led presentations that delve into audience behavior and investigate how consumers engage with Outdoor mediums. The Headline series is in its 4th year having begun in 2013 in which time APN Outdoor has investigated FMCG, Gen Y, Digital Billboards, Luxury and most recently Airport audience via 2015’s The Airport Economy.

Focusing on the synergy between mobile, social media and outdoor advertising, The Social Economy digs deeper into consumer’s mobile behavior and the cohesion and potential brand amplification available when combined with APN Outdoor’s Elite Screens. Tethered to The Attention Economy’s examination of audience’s relationship with their smartphones, the presentation supports the connection between mobile behavior and being outdoors. With audiences spending on average 17.5 hours outside and 12 hours using their smartphones a week, The Social Economy drives the idea that APN Outdoor’s Elite Screens offer the perfect broadcast platform to drive in-real-life conversations online and vis-versa.

The presentation draws from international and local research into the behavioral trends of consumers regarding social media and mobile devices and also examines in depth the national partnership between Twitter and APN Outdoor via the Australian Open campaign. As Australia’s most progressive Outdoor advertising company, it was a natural move to partner with social media giant, Twitter. The executions engaged Elite Screens and RSS technology to amplify unique hashtags and broadcast incentive driven and sentimental engagement messaging to the country’s Outdoor audience.

David Ray, Director, Audiences and Growth, Twitter remarked “We already know that Tweets don’t just live on Twitter; they can be seen just about everywhere. This partnership was a fantastic opportunity to share the reach of the Australian Open Twitter content to APN Outdoor’s audience in a unique way … assisting #AusOpen Tweets to travel even further, increasing conversation around this great Australian event.”

Mark Fairhurst, General Manager-Sales, APN Outdoor went onto say “Mobile usage and social media is becoming part of everyday life and with Outdoor audiences is growing year on year, combining forces is a natural move. The insights from The Social Economy reaffirms the positive synergy between Outdoor and smartphones usage and begins to uncover the huge potential this collaboration offers advertisers.”

APN Outdoor are leaders in the Outdoor space across Australia and New Zealand and have demonstrated an ongoing commitment to the leadership and pioneering of digital outdoor in Australia. APN Outdoor with developments across their Elite Screen, Transit Technology, XtrackTV and Airport portfolios nationally with the portfolio continuing to grow.

Australia: Brandscreen announces multimillion-dollar deal with Chinese tech giant

Australian-founded media-buying platform Brandscreen has sealed a multimillion-dollar “landmark deal” with a major software development business in China.

The 2007-founded demand-side platform (DSP), which is used by digital agencies, brand advertisers, and media trading desks, has inked a deal with Bejing-based ChannelSoft. The move has boosted the Sydney-based business' coffers so much that it is set to double its team of engineers – taking it to 16 – making a combined team of about 25 in Sydney.

While Brandscreen CEO Rob Manning and COO Neil Anderson wouldn't be drawn on the specifics of the contract, they said it was a "landmark deal”. AdNews understands the revenue runs into several millions of dollars per annum. Manning says the move by one of China's leading SaaS service providers, to export Australian designed and developed software for its DSP is a bold shift set to ignite the Chinese advertising market.

The duo will jointly develop Chinese digital out of home and the independent DSP for the large enterprises market – meaning that Brandscreen's tech will be rolled out to ChannleSoft's top 200 clients. “The win-win co-operation of our two companies will bring not only innovations to DSP applications, but vitality to China's DSP market and will promote the development of China's DSP market,” Manning says.

Manning adds that the collaboration was inspired by the recent Chinese Australia Free Trade Agreement announced by the Australian government, and Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit in late 2014 to Australia. “With intensive competition among many DSP providers, internet advertising served by DSP reached a scale of 5.86 billion RMB at the end of 2014. However in China, the digital out of home sector and independent DSPs for large enterprises 'is still a blue sea'”, he says.

“The Chinese market has seen a rapid trending towards DSP solution, which is becoming one of propelling forces to internet advertising and RTB market.” Manning, who hinted another big global deal is in the pipeline, added that off the back of the news business win Brandscreen is also set to move offices after Easter this year.

Source

ASIA NEWS

Thailand: VGI Global Media to fully acquire OOH firm Master Ad for $71.25m

VGI Global Media, the media and advertising arm of Thailand’s mass transit operator BTS Group, is planning to acquire the remaining shares in local out-of-home media firm Master Ad Pcl (MACO) for a consideration of 2.48 billion baht ($71.25 million).

This is part of VGI’s policy to expand its out of home media network to maintain its industry leading position, according to a company statement. VGI said, it will fund the acquisition by cash flow and loans from financial institutions. VGI, which currently holds 24.96 per cent in Master Ad, will first purchase 375 million shares of MACO, representing 12.46 per cent of its paid-up capital for 412.5 million baht.

Subsequently, it will make a tender offer to acquire the remaining 62.58 per cent at 1.10 baht apiece with a maximum aggregate consideration of 2.07 billion baht. MACO and its subsidiaries mainly generate income from rentals on advertising media, production of advertisements and provision of fully-integrated services to customers under the concept “OHM Gateway Connectivity”.

Master Ad reported total revenue of 719.19 million baht in 2015, up from 665.79 million baht in 2014. The net profit was 171.39 million baht last year, up from 135.41 million baht in 2014, despite the country’s economic slowdown.

Source

MIDDLE EAST NEWS

UAE: MERAAS Development appoints Backlite Media as Media Partner for its Prestigious City Walk Project

City Walk is a dynamic new outdoor destination in the heart of Jumeirah, designed to evolve into a ‘city within a city’. Created by Meraas Development, it brings together a unique mix of innovative retail outlets offering leading international and regional brands, upscale gourmet dining establishments and high-end lifestyle, grooming and wellness options as well as innovative leisure and entertainment concepts.

Taking full advantage of the pedestrian-friendly layout, numerous digital and static media locations have been installed to offer potential advertisers a unique and prestigious media option that will provide exceptional exposure to national, expat and international consumers at the immediate point-of-purchase.

Commenting on this exciting appointment, BackLite Media’s Managing Director James Bicknell said ‘Meraas Development’s conceptualization for City Walk is an ideal fit for BackLite Media’s own business philosophy – presenting world-class brands using the very best technology coupled with outstanding design and targeting the middle and high socio-economic groups. We are delighted to be appointed by Meraas as their sole media partner for City Walk and look forward to meeting with our clients and media associates to present City Walk’s unique digital and static media opportunities for their products and services’.

Konstantinos Michail, Head – Promotions and Media at Meraas Development, added further comments to BackLite Media’s appointment; ‘City Walk is a significant project for Meraas Development and BackLite Media demonstrated that they have the media expertise, passion and market knowledge to successfully promote and elevate the media opportunities at City Walk to a broad range of clients. We look forward to working closely with them to establish City Walk as the premier retail and lifestyle destination in Dubai’.