Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief
OUTFRONT Media (NYSE:OUT), one of the largest out of home media (OOH) companies in the U.S., continues to be at the forefront of innovation and digitization in the industry with the expansion of programmatic capabilities in transit advertising. The company is actively expanding its rollout of programmatic in New York City’s MTA system, which will cover nearly all of the MTA’s subway stations – with the potential to reach more than four million daily trips from New Yorkers and tourists – along with commuter rail stations in the surrounding areas.
In 2023, OUTFRONT conducted a successful pilot launch of programmatic capabilities on over 900 Digital and Video Urban Panels (DUPs/VUPs) outside MTA subway entrances and exits. With this rollout, advertisers will also be able to programmatically access thousands of Liveboards inside stations.
These digital signs, in a variety of formats, can be used to reach desirable audiences with brand messaging according to several variables – including time of day, day of the week and location. The additional Liveboards will bring the total of programmatically enabled signs to 3,800 – across 436 stations in all five boroughs (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island), as well as 30 stations in Long Island and 18 Metro-North Railroad stations.
We are told that this expansion creates America’s largest programmatically available full-motion transit network.
“Transit advertising’s ability to impact consumers along their daily journeys and multiple times throughout the day brings phenomenal, contextual reach at a time when brands are seeking innovative ways to make digital connections in the face of cookies going away, a fragmented media world, and other challenges,” said Neil Shapiro, OUTFRONT Media’s Vice President of Programmatic. “Add DOOH’s natural brand safety, flexibility, speed to market, audience targeting, and measurement, and now, the ability that programmatic provides to see comprehensive campaign reporting in one platform and you’ve got one of the most powerful tools on the market.”
Among the advertisers to take advantage of this expanding digital capability are The Trade Desk, Fresh Pet, the National Basketball Association (NBA), a major high-end department store, and a well-known hotel chain, all with exceptional results.
“Given our longstanding advertising relationship with OUTFRONT, we knew they would be a great partner to work with on the MTA’s programmatic DOOH launch,” says Jeff Kerestes, Director of Digital Marketing at The Trade Desk. “OUTFRONT was able to make it a seamless process within our DSP and to provide clear value for our media investment.”
Strategically located in high-dwell environments with minimal distractions, programmatic DUPs/VUPs and Liveboards utilize static and video ads to capture the attention of consumers and create deeper brand engagement. OUTFRONT’s comprehensive post-campaign report includes impression delivery, spend and timing of ad plays.
OUTFRONT assets are available through their programmatic partners: Vistar, Place Exchange, and Hivestack.
You an contact programmatic@outfront.com for specs and more information.
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