Broadsign Jul 2024 lead

TfGM to utilise AI To Deliver Better Bus Journeys

August 20th, 2024

Andrew Neale

CitySwift, a leader in performance optimisation for the public transport sector across the globe, has partnered with Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), the local government body responsible for transport in Greater Manchester in the UK.

We are told that this partnership looks to power the future of Manchester’s public transport network through the use of #AI and data.

This likely makes TfGM the first franchised transport authority in the UK to utilise AI to deliver more reliable, frequent and quicker bus journeys. Around half of the bus network in Greater Manchester is under local control, with the remaining half joining in from 5th January 2025.

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Primedia Adds Nine Dis-Chem Pharmacies

August 20th, 2024

Tristan Cotterill

South Africa’s Primedia Out-of-Home has launched programmatic enabled in-store screens at nine Dis-Chem pharmacies, marking a pivotal moment in its expansion strategy.

We are told that this initiative highlights Primedia Out-of-Home’s commitment to enhancing consumer engagement throughout the user journey, from roadside billboards to high-traffic retail environments.

S’thokoza Nhleko Head of Marketing at Bayer Sub-Saharan Africa, said “We are thrilled to partner with Primedia Out-of-Home on this innovative campaign. The ability to tailor our messaging based on weather conditions not only enhances our brand’s relevance but also allows us to connect with consumers in meaningful ways during different weather scenarios.”
The integration of weather-triggered campaigns represents another breakthrough, allowing brands to dynamically adjust messages based on real-time weather conditions. This capability is exemplified by the current campaign for Cal-C-Vita, a product by Bayer, which aligns perfectly with Dis-Chem’s health-focused consumer base.

Genevieve Coward, Marketing and Revenue Growth Executive at Primedia Out-of-Home told us “Our expansion into Dis-Chem pharmacies and the introduction of weather-triggered campaigns reflect our commitment to innovation. These initiatives leverage our extensive network and deep understanding of consumer behaviour, offering brands unparalleled opportunities to engage with audiences effectively.”

In-store screens at Dis-Chem pharmacies provide extended dwell times and opportunities to influence purchasing decisions in a high-intent environment. This strategic placement enhances the effectiveness of campaigns, driving measurable results for brands.

Primedia Out-of-Home remains dedicated to pushing boundaries in OOH advertising, continuously adapting to meet the evolving needs of brands and consumers. Through strategic partnerships and technological advancements, Primedia Out-of-Home enriches consumer experiences while delivering measurable ROI for advertisers.

US #OOH Record-Breaking Quarter and H1 Growth

August 20th, 2024

Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief

US Out of home (OOH) advertising revenue increased 3.4% in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the previous year, accounting for USD 2.78 billion, based on figures released by the Out of Home Advertising Association of America (OAAA). This marks the highest quarterly volume ever for OOH, propelling first-half growth to a 4.8% increase.

“Out of home’s record ad spend generation is a testimony to its effectiveness. Our position as a highly relevant consumer medium is reflected across the board, but particularly in the political arena,” said Anna Bager, President and CEO, OAAA. “Political ad spend in OOH is at the highest levels ever because of our ability to deliver location-based targeting, and OOH’s resonance with younger and multicultural audiences .US House and Senate OOH campaign spending in the first half of 2024 has quadrupled from 2020 and is up 70% from 2022.”

The report offers a deep dive into trends and growth areas for the channel, including the below findings.

Digital OOH Key Growth Driver

Digital OOH, which accounted for 34% of quarterly sales, increased 7.5% from a year ago.

OOH Growth Across Industries Positive Economic Indicator 

The Transit category generated the greatest growth against the second quarter of 2023, increasing by 13.7%.

Seven of the top 10 product industries increased in quarterly volume led by Automotive Dealers and Services (+17.8%), Retail (+14.8%), Local Services & Amusements (+10.1%), Insurance and Real Estate (+8.1%), Public Transportation, Hotels & Resorts (+4.4%); Schools, Camps, & Seminars (+2.1%), and Restaurants (+1.3%), reflecting the overall broad strength of the economy.

The top 10 OOH product categories in volume for the second quarter were:

  • Legal Services
  • Hospitals, Clinics & Medical Centers
  • Domestic Hotels & Resorts
  • Quick Serve Restaurants
  • Colleges & Universities
  • Consumer Banking
  • Local Government
  • Online & Mobile Travel Services
  • Chain Food Stores & Supermarkets
  • Television & Cable TV Programming

Online and Mobile Travel Services spending increased by 78%, while spending in the Computer Software category, which placed twelfth in OOH volume, jumped 46%.

Top Brands Increasing Spend

Ranked in order of OOH spending, the top 10 advertisers in the first quarter were Hotels.com, Apple, McDonald’s, Verizon, Coca-Cola, Morgan & Morgan Attorneys, Amazon, Disney, Expedia and Universal Pictures.

Among the top 100 OOH advertisers, two-thirds increased their OOH spend from Q2 2023, and 14 more than doubled their spend including (listed by spend % increase): Ramp, Molson Coors, Ford, QuikTrip, Honda, StackAdapt, FanDuel, Sixt Rent the Car, Skechers, 7-Eleven, Hotels.com, Pepsi, Progressive, Total Wine & More.

Technology and DTC Brand Adoption

One-quarter of the top 100 OOH spenders were technology or direct-to-consumer brands, including these twelve brands which finished among the top 25 (according to spend): Hotels.com, Apple, Verizon, Amazon, Expedia, Google, VRBO, T-Mobile, Netflix, Uber, Samsung, and StackAdapt.

OAAA issues full industry pro forma revenue estimates that include, but are not limited to, Miller Kaplan and MediaRadar/Vivvix (which is not adjusted to reflect changes in data sources), and member company affidavits. Revenue estimates include digital and static billboard, street furniture, transit, place-based, and cinema advertising.

For more information about specific category spend, please contact Steve Nicklin at snicklin@oaaa.org or (202) 833-5566.

Branded Cities Relaunches Bryant Park Digital Spectacular

August 20th, 2024

Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief

Branded Cities, North America’s premier Out-of-Home and iconic media company this week announced that the upgrade of its iconic Bryant Park Digital spectacular is now complete and running brand copy on Manhattan’s highly trafficked 42nd Street corridor. Only steps from Manhattan’s popular destination, Bryant Park, Branded Cities’ updated sign remains Manhattan’s only large-format digital spectacular east of Times Square capable of supporting multiple brands on its high-definition display.

As part of this multi-million-dollar upgrade, the Bryant Park Digital spectacular sports a new 10mm display courtesy of SNA’s line of EMPIRE™ Exterior video LEDs. This improvement provides a significant increase in quality over Bryant Park Digital’s previous iteration, bringing brands’ creatives to life with even greater color, clarity and definition.

“We are excited to have lit up our new Bryant Park Digital spectacular on 42nd Street in the heart of Midtown Manhattan,” said Vaibhav “VG” Gupta, president and COO of Branded Cities. “The increase in quality of our sign will lend itself well to the beautiful campaigns we are seeing in the industry and will be a key selling point as we enter the final third of the year.”

North Shore Neon provided installation for the new display.

The Bryant Park Digital spectacular will continue to be capable of supporting a large variety of Out-of-Home executions such as dynamic content, Dreamroom 3D creative and will be available programmatically on participating supply-side platforms (SSPs).

Placer.ai Raises (Another) USD 75M

August 20th, 2024

Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief

Placer.ai, which develops a location analytics and foot traffic data platform, has raised USD 75 million at a USD 1.5 billion valuation.

This is a 50% increase from the USD 1 billion valuation it received when it raised USD 100 million in its previous funding round back in January 2022.

This latest round included only existing investors; Josh Buckley, WndrCo, Lachy Groom, MMC Technology Ventures LLC, Fifth Wall Ventures, and Array Ventures.

To date, Placer has raised a total of over USD 240 million.

The (Australian) Creative Census

August 19th, 2024

Tristan Cotterill

The Creative Census is back for the third year running, the annual survey of Australia’s media and marketing industries, measuring creative thinking.

The 24-question survey asks participants working in media publishers, agencies (media, creative, content, production, communications) and consumer marketing for their perceptions about the level of creativity, collaboration, and innovation in their company, which is then measured against the broader industry.

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GSTV Street Safety #PSA

August 19th, 2024

Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief

Timed to National Traffic Awareness Month in August, GSTV, the national on-the-go video network engaging and entertaining targeted audiences at scale across tens of thousands of fuel retailers, is partnering with Streets Are For Everyone (SAFE) to bring excerpts of award-winning student films themed around road safety to a national audience through their platform.

The films that will be featured are winning submissions from the Streets, Art, SAFE Film Competition that included high school students from Southern California, Arizona, and Florida. Full-length versions of the award-winning films will be available for viewing at StreetsArtSAFE.org.

The films will be spotlighted by GSTV from August 19th through September 15th at GSTV sites throughout the U.S. The featured films include:

  • Speed Kills, Castaic High School, in Castaic, CA (Best PSA Gold 2023)
  • Alcohol Kills Others, Ramona High School, in Riverside, CA (Best Research and Accuracy of Traffic Safety Facts Awards 2024)
  • Little Buddy, Bishop Mora Salesian High School, in Boyle Heights, LA, CA (Best PSA Bronze 2023)
  • On the Curb, Claremont High School, in Claremont, CA (Best PSA Gold 2019)

Kristina Lutz, EVP, Marketing, GSTV said, “We look forward to showcasing and amplifying the work of these talented young filmmakers through our platform in partnership with Streets Are For Everyone. Their work is compelling and impactful, and introducing this content to drivers when they are just about to get back on the road is the perfect time to remind them about safety precautions.”

The Streets, Art, SAFE Film Competition is a program for high school students to advocate for street safety through the arts, created by the non-profit organization Streets Are For Everyone which aims to improve the quality of life for pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers alike by reducing traffic fatalities to zero. This program aims to educate and empower students to do something about it through creative, fun, artistic, and impactful visual storytelling, while also developing film and visual arts expertise.

Damian Kevitt, the Founder of Streets Are For Everyone said, “Through our film competition, students have gained invaluable lessons about road safety and have taken it upon themselves to educate others about what they’ve learned. As one of last year’s winning students aptly put it: ‘It takes a lot of responsibility to drive, and it’s not a joke; it’s not a game.’ We sincerely appreciate GSTV for broadcasting the important messages from these talented high school students about road safety.”

Student filmmakers participating in the contest are mentored by volunteer Hollywood industry professionals to advise throughout the film ideation and production process, and the film competition is also judged by industry pros. The mentors and judges have been tied to projects including Equals, American Horror Story, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Barry, and Obi-Wan Kenobi.  The 2024/25 Streets, Art, SAFE Film Competition kicks off on August 19, 2024.

GSTV reaches 115 million unique viewers per month in 49 states and has an impressive attention rate with 95% of impressions on GSTV delivering eyes to screen. The platform attracts both celebrity talent and best-in-class entertainment partners including Maria Menounos, Live Nation, and Big Machine Label Group, as well as top creators and content partners like Tank Sinatra (Tank’s Good News) and TikTok, among others for their programming. GSTV is also committed to supporting rising artists. Their partnership with Streets Are For Everyone is only the most recent example of GSTV leveraging their screens for good. Since 2019, GSTV has partnered with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) to leverage its national video network to help in the search for missing youth.

For more information about the Street, Arts, SAFE Film Competition, visit: www.StreetsArtSAFE.org

ChargeEuropa Secures Funding Round

August 19th, 2024

Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief

Poland’s leading electric vehicle charging infrastructure company ChargeEuropa, has just closed another funding round.

The round was led by Shift4Good, a Paris-based, 200 million EUR impact investment fund – marking a historic milestone as the first significant French investment in Poland’s electromobility ecosystem. Shift4Good’s notable LPs include Renault Group, BNP Paribas Group, and the European Investment Fund.

Matthieu de Chanville, Managing Partner at Shift4Good told us “Our investment in ChargeEuropa reflects our commitment to supporting innovative companies that drive positive environmental impact. We look forward to supporting ChargeEuropa expand into new markets, contributing to a sustainable transformation of transportation in Poland and Europe.”

Shift4Good brings deep experience from the automotive sector, providing strategic guidance and support to ChargeEuropa. This expertise will optimize ChargeEuropa’s plans to scale its operations, leveraging Shift4Good’s industry knowledge and connections to accelerate EV charging network growth.

The funding round also attracted co-investments and follow-on investments from several prominent players, including Simpact Ventures, a well-known Polish impact fund focusing on generating a positive, measurable social impact; MobilityFund, a German venture capital firm specializing in the mobility and transportation sector; and Canard Ventures, an American investment firm engaged in creative technologies. Swiss/Polish entrepreneur Alex Kostecki, known for co-founding the finance app Clair, also participated in the round. Kostecki brings valuable experience in scaling technology companies, having recently helped Clair secure a $175 million financing round.

Funding from the new investors together with the indicated banking market appetite will enable ChargeEuropa to expand its team and accelerate the development of its cutting-edge EV charging and Digital Out of Home technology. ChargeEuropa currently has a pipeline of over 1000 locations across Poland, this funding round will support team in deploying new chargers nationwide. The company also plans to expand its network into new markets, solidifying its position as a leader in the CEE EV charging infrastructure sector.

Matt Tymowski, CEO of ChargeEuropa said “We’re excited to have a dream-team of investors, each representing key pillars of what makes our business successful. The support we receive from them will allow us to take ChargeEuropa to the next level. The involvement of our international investors underscores the growing interest in the Polish electromobility sector. This investment will not only help us enhance our technology and grow our team but also accelerate our mission to make EV charging more accessible and convenient across Poland and beyond.”

ChargeEuropa’s latest funding round marks a key milestone for the company and the broader Polish electromobility landscape, attracting international attention and investment. The company says that it remains dedicated to pioneering sustainable solutions and setting new standards in the EV charging industry.

LG Electronics Invests in #AI and DeepTech Startups

August 19th, 2024

Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief

LG Electronics (LG) is making significant investments in startups specializing in artificial intelligence (AI) and deep tech.

It appears that LG has committed USD 10 million as a key limited partner in the newly established USD 130 million ‘Alpha Intelligence Fund (AIF)’ by SBVA.

SBVA will curate a portfolio for AIF by selecting startups with high growth potential in AI, deep tech and robotics. The firm aims to leverage its global networks and resources to support the growth and meaningful achievements of these startups.

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Brian Lerner Joins Datonics

August 16th, 2024

Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief

Brian Lerner has joined Datonics as their new VP, Customer Success.

Brian will be leading and building their customer support team and working with their sales team to grow partnerships with demand partners.

Brian Lerner is a seasoned adtech professional with expertise in building and executing strategic partnership and customer success programs. He spent the last six years at Gravy Analytics, where he built the customer success team. Prior to that he worked at Comscore where he managed the client-facing launch of Xmedia, a measurement and planning solution that allows users to create cross-media packages that combine properties from TV and digital platforms.

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