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The Outdoor Media Association (OMA) Industry Awards that occurred last Thursday on the 2nd May 2024, recognised outstanding contributions and achievements within the advertising and media industry.

This year’s ceremony showcased exceptional talent, innovation, and dedication across various categories, including the two new awards of Excellence in Design and Construction and Excellence in Field Work and Work Health and Safety.

• Emerging Leader. The Emerging Leader category spotlights individuals who exhibit exceptional promise and leadership qualities early in their careers. Adrian Venditti of QMS emerged as the winner, demonstrating remarkable potential and vision within the industry.
• OMA Industry Award. Graeme Wooster of QMS was honoured with the prestigious OMA Industry Award, recognising his significant contributions and impact on the industry.
• Excellence in Innovation. Innovation drives progress, and the Excellence in Innovation category celebrates those who push the boundaries of creativity and technology. Brad Palmer of JCDecaux Australia claimed the top spot, showcasing pioneering ideas and solutions in Out of Home advertising.
• Outstanding Service. Recognising outstanding service is essential in acknowledging those who go above and beyond in their roles. Nick Errey of QMS in NSW, Mel Maggs of goa Billboards in QLD and a Highly Commended awarded to Caleb Harriott, GoTransit Media Group QLD, Maddy Shopov of oOh! in SA, Andrew Hines of JCDecaux Australia in VIC, and Megan Camp of VMO in WA were all honoured for their exceptional dedication and contributions to their respective regions.
• Rising Stars. The Rising Star category shines a spotlight on up-and-coming talent in the industry. Winners like Jade S. of JCDecaux Australia in NSW, Harriet Marshall of Scentre Group BrandSpace in QLD, Rachel Girdler of oOh! in SA, Tayla Harrison of VMO in VIC, and Caitlin Montgomery of oOh! in WA have demonstrated outstanding potential and a commitment to excellence in their work.
• Excellence in Design and Construction. The City of Sydney Project Delivery Team of QMS received recognition for their exceptional work in design and construction, highlighting the importance of creativity and quality in outdoor advertising initiatives. There was also a highly commended awarded to Sydney Trains, JCDecaux Australia.
• Excellence in Field Work and Work Health and Safety. Corinna Murtagh of JCDecaux Australia was honoured for her exemplary contributions to fieldwork and work health and safety, emphasising the importance of maintaining high standards in these crucial areas. There was also a highly commended awarded to Kylie Maughan, TorchMedia.

Brendon Cook, a visionary leader and pioneer in the Out of Home advertising industry has been honoured with induction into the Outdoor Media Association (OMA) Hall of Fame for his remarkable achievements and lasting impact on the industry in Australia.

With a career marked by unparalleled dedication and strategic foresight, Brendon has continuously pushed the boundaries of innovation and business growth. His profound understanding of business strategy, coupled with a relentless pursuit of excellence, has shaped the landscape of Out of Home advertising in Australia and New Zealand.

As the founder of oOh!media, he spearheaded the industry’s transition to digital, positioning himself at the forefront of OOH advertising innovation. Under his leadership, oOh!media experienced exponential growth, driven by strategic acquisitions, organic expansion, and the introduction of pioneering advertising environments to capitalise on the digital revolution and evolving consumer behaviours.

Brendon’s tenure at oOh!media has been nothing short of extraordinary, marked by two successful ASX listings, private equity ownership, and nearly 40 strategic acquisitions. His visionary leadership transformed oOh!media from a two-person startup to a powerhouse with over 800 employees, solidifying its position as the market leader in the industry today.

“Brendon Cook’s induction into the OMA Hall of Fame is a testament to his unparalleled contributions and unwavering commitment to driving innovation and growth in the Out of Home advertising sector,” said Elizabeth McIntyre, CEO at OMA. “His visionary leadership and transformative initiatives have left an indelible mark on the industry, and we are thrilled to honour his legacy.”

In addition to his groundbreaking work at oOh!media, Brendon has also served as an ASX Director for over 16 years, played a pivotal role as the International Vice President of The World Out of Home Organisation, and contributed to the digital publishing landscape as a Founding Director and shareholder of ilearning.

Brendon Cook’s induction into the OMA Hall of Fame is a well-deserved recognition of his outstanding achievements and enduring impact on the Out of Home advertising industry. His legacy will continue to inspire future generations of industry leaders to innovate, adapt, and drive positive change.

JCDecaux has been awarded the Transport for NSW (TfNSW) bus advertising contract for all buses in the Sydney Metropolitan regions (it also successfully renewed its Perth bus advertising contract, in addition to holding the bus contract in Brisbane and the tram and bus contracts in Melbourne).

Winning the competitive tender process marks a significant expansion of JCDecaux’s current bus advertising contracts across Sydney. It extends JCDecaux’s Transit reach across the whole of Sydney Metropolitan regions into LGAs including the Northern Beaches, the Hills District, Campbelltown, Liverpool, and Camden.

Steve O’Connor, CEO of JCDecaux Australia and New Zealand told us “We look forward to continuing our bus advertising partnership with TfNSW, which confirms JCDecaux as market-leaders in Transit advertising across Australia. In an era of digitisation across most Out-of-Home products, bus advertising maintains significant appeal for advertisers through its distinctive blend of broad audience reach, high frequency and visibility, and cost-effectiveness. It presents a powerful format for advertisers seeking to build their brand, amplify their message and effectively engage with diverse audiences. This expansion to our portfolio also provides an exciting platform to relaunch Transit later this year with innovations and impactful product enhancements.”

JCDecaux will now oversee advertising for a fleet of over 3,200 buses. This expansion builds upon the existing JCDecaux Sydney Buses network, which already reaches ninety percent of Greater Sydney ever two weeks*.

JCDecaux’s successful bid included a strong focus on data innovation as well as positive impact aligned with the company’s Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) strategy and Reconciliation Action Plan. Transit advertising offers brands the opportunity to support sustainability and invest in our cities by delivering revenue that helps finance public transport services. In addition, JCDecaux has created the Low Emissions Bus Network product, allowing advertisers to display across the growing electric bus network. JCDecaux will continue to innovate more sustainable products such as this, so advertisers can actively choose to support the climate transition in transport and advertising.

This latest win confirms JCDecaux as the only Out-of-Home operator with a national transit network of coverage across all five major capital cities. This month, JCDecaux was also successful in retaining the Adelaide bus advertising contract after a competitive tender process. The contract, managed by the South Australian Department of Transport & Infrastructure (DIT), commences immediately for seven years. JCDecaux will continue to provide extensive coverage along the most popular commuter bus routes in both metro and suburban areas of Adelaide, from the CBD to the suburbs, the airport, Adelaide Oval and numerous local shopping precincts.

The impending launch of MOVE2, combined with all-new access to real-time transit data, will provide advertisers with more detailed audience movement patterns. This enhanced capability will allow advertisers to better understand the reach and impact of their campaigns, as well as optimise targeting strategies to connect with their desired audience segments more effectively.

To oversee its market leadership in Transit, JCDecaux has promoted Ben White to the role of General Manager, Transit, overseeing the entire national portfolio. Ben has been working across a portfolio of diverse and innovative projects within his role as National Director – Customer Growth & Head of Nurture.

Leading digital outdoor company QMS today announced a further expansion of its NSW network, signing a new agreement with the Australian Turf Club to manage key assets at Sydney’s iconic Rosehill Gardens Racecourse.

QMS Chief Operating Officer, Sara Lappage, told us “QMS is thrilled to be working with the Australian Turf Club for the first time. Rosehill Gardens Racecourse is a vibrant lifestyle and entertainment destination, and these new premium digital billboards will further enhance our expanding Sydney network, allowing advertisers to gain even greater reach of a growing and influential western Sydney audience.”

The agreement, which was secured as part of a competitive tender process, takes effect on June 3, 2024 and covers six locations along James Ruse Drive.

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Scott Pollard has joined UK AV and workplace distributor onemedia as account director.

Scott brings over 20 years of experience in the pro AV channel to onemedia, with roles including technical director at True Colours, project director at Midwich and, most recently, regional sales manager (UK & Ireland) for Mersive Technologies.

We uderstand that he will also be responsible for working with onemedia’s systems integration partners and AV consultants.

Former Vistar Media exec Amanda Pui has joined Seedtag as Canada National Sales Director, effectively expanding the company’s operations into Canada with the appointment.

In her new role, Amanda will be responsible for opening the Canadian market and building brand awareness for Seedtag as global contextual leader while developing partnerships and driving revenue across Canadian agencies, brands and publishers.

“Seedtag is very proud to be investing in the Canadian media industry, hiring local Canadian media professionals and supporting Canadian publishers,” said Brian Danzis, President of North America at Seedtag, “With Amanda heading our Canadian expansion, Seedtag is ideally positioned to bring a new era of privacy first, AI-enabled advertising to an important and exciting new market.”

Amanda spent 12+ years in the digital media space, on the agency-side and in sales roles on both the SSP/DSP side. Most recently, she spent six years at Vistar Media building that company’s programmatic DOOH offering in Canada. Over her tenure, she managed a team covering agency and brand-direct clients, helped scale Vistar’s presence to 15 people and created a mature DOOH product in the Canadian market.

Natalie Kessler has joined Williamson & Associates as Associate Broker. Natalie brings over two decades of experience in the outdoor advertising sector. Throughout her career, she has fulfilled various roles within the industry, including owner/operator, sales executive, real estate manager, and site developer.

Her professional journey commenced officially with Lamar Advertising in Ohio and Georgia, followed by a tenure at Morris Communications in the Newspaper industry. Natalie later returned to Ohio to contribute to the development of the digital billboard network at her family’s out-of-home company, Kessler Outdoor. After helping develop the digital billboard network in Ohio, Natalie, alongside her family, established K2 Media, Inc, a billboard company that covered the Panhandle of Florida. Through strategic guidance from our firm, the billboard assets of K2 Media were successfully divested in 2020. Subsequently, in 2023, the billboard assets of Kessler Outdoor found new ownership once again through the assistance of Williamson & Associates.

President and CEO, Marty Williamson, told us “I first had the privilege of meeting Natalie along with her father, Bob Kessler, around six years ago at an OAAA conference. That connection led us to assist the Kesslers with the divestiture of K2 Media to TierOne Media in 2020. Natalie had been running that part of the Kessler Outdoor family. After the sale, we stayed in touch and over time began to talk about the potential sale of Kessler Outdoor in southeast Ohio. Natalie was highly involved in the sales process and ran point on getting the house in order with all that was needed internally prior to a successful closing. She did an excellent job! Amber and I were always very impressed with her and enjoyed the collaboration. After we closed with Oliver Outdoor at the end of 2023, I asked Natalie what her plans were now that the family was no longer in OOH. She said that she was considering some business brokering to which my reply was ‘well then my goodness, why don’t you join us and broker billboard assets?’ Natalie, much like my daughter, Amber, grew up in the industry and her knowledge and experience, especially after going through the sales process at Kessler and K2, give her a special understanding of what sellers go through in the entire process from listing to closing. With her unique experience and impressive credentials, she is very well qualified to help our clients through the M & A process and we are excited to see what is in store for her!”

Natalie is a graduate of the University of Dayton with a degree in Marketing, she later earned her MBA. She holds the designation of Accredited Business Intermediary (ABI) from the American Business Brokers Association, is a member of the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA), and is a Florida licensed commercial real estate agent.

Forner oOh!media Group Revenue Director Sean Rigby has joined QMS as National Trading and Partnerships Director.

Sean left oOh!media earlier this year and will replace at QMS the role left by former General Manager – Trading, John Glynn. He will join QMS in quarter four 2024 and will be based in Sydney.

QMS Chief Executive Officer, John O’Neill told us “I’m delighted to welcome Sean to QMS, and I know his experience, relationships and passion for OOH will make a significant impact on our business. As QMS continues to expand and lead the industry in digital OOH, we are constantly on the lookout for the right people. So, when Sean became available, we jumped at the opportunity to bring him on board to head up our trading team and continue to help foster strong relationships with our client and agency partners. Sean’s experience within the Australian media industry will be a tremendous asset to our business. His proven experience and commercial understanding will prove crucial to our ongoing expansion and success”.

With over 20 years’ experience in the out of home industry, including key agency sales roles at JCDecaux and Clear Channel in the UK, the appointment will see him responsible for revenue strategy, analytics, pricing and inventory, business intelligence, revenue reporting and trading partnerships.

Coming out of the 2024 NewFronts, GSTV, the national on-the-go video network engaging and entertaining targeted audiences at scale across tens of thousands of fuel retailers, unveiled this week a new study in collaboration with Lumen Research, the leading technology company for attention measurement, that for the first time quantifies actual visual attention paid to real ads on the network.

Lumen found that GSTV viewer attentiveness exceeds attention benchmarks for digital, CTV, and linear television advertising. The study was conducted in alignment with Dentsu’s Attention Economy initiative, enabling comparisons with norms from the agency’s 5-year attention measurement program.

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Vistar Media has announced the acquisition of traditional OOH planning and buying software, ADstruc, from PJX Media.

“We live in a world powered by software, and the OOH media industry is no different,” said Michael Provenzano, CEO & Co-Founder of Vistar Media. “Vistar has had an amazing journey across our programmatic marketplace and enterprise software businesses, but at the same time, our customers consistently remind us that digital OOH—and programmatic within it—is just a portion of the greater OOH landscape. Our rebrand says it all: Vistar Media is ‘the home of out-of-home.’ To truly embody this, we must substantially contribute to how OOH is traditionally bought and sold. ADstruc completes our commitment to the industry and brings ADstruc customers and partners the software they love, with the engineering scale and service excellence that is Vistar.”

For almost 15 years, ADstruc software has automated the traditional OOH planning, buying, and selling workflow. By eliminating routine tasks, ADstruc frees agencies to focus on strategy, creativity, and ROI for their clients. The tool streamlined media operations for PJX Media, enabling them to efficiently handle hundreds of millions in OOH billings with a team of experienced OOH experts. In total, the ADstruc platform processed over $1B of combined OOH investments for PJX and other agency subscribers. Now, backed by Vistar’s robust engineering, exceptional customer support, and experience scaling software globally, ADstruc is poised to become the go-to platform for the OOH industry worldwide.

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