CBS announced their “CBS Mobile Zone,” this week, a WiFi network embedded inside posters. CBS Outdoor, their outdoor advertising unit, said it will enable New Yorkers with Wi-Fi-enabled cell phones, laptops or other devices to access the Internet for free, and make VOIP calls.
The CBS Mobile Zone, which is available today in certain areas, will be fully operational on by month’s end with a footprint of more than 20 city blocks from Times Square to Central Park South and from 6th Avenue to 8th Avenue. This initiative is part of a 6-month pilot program with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and New York City Transit to test the potential communications capabilities of Wi-Fi embedded within posters.
The ultimate goal, said CBS Outdoor CEO Wally Kelly, is “to evaluate the prospect of applying WiFi capabilities across our outdoor properties globally.”
CBS says their ad-supported homepage will include local content as well as breaking local and national news, sports highlights, weather reports, music discovery, wallpapers, ringtones, maps, a social network and the ability to search for nearby shops and entertainment along with geographically-targeted community reviews.
“We are pleased to deliver what may be the most advanced wireless and pre-WiMax, outdoor offering of it’s kind in the U.S,” said Cyriac Roeding, Executive Vice President, CBS Mobile.
CBS Outdoor billboards and Transit-owned urban panels located above select subway station entrances have been fitted with transmitters in a joint initiative. Many local businesses will also be offered free routers allowing companies and patrons to tap into the “CBS Mobile Zone” from indoors. CBS partnered with Tropos, BIG, Fon, Ning, Goowy, Veoh, Yelp, 1020, Aptilo and Can-Do Entertainment, and will provide interactive advertising opportunities that can be localized down to the individual billboard.
Last year CBS tried Bluetooth Posters, using the same model used by the BBC. Viacom Outdoor installed 15 Bluetooth ‘Jacks’ developed by technology company Wideray (now called Qwikker), last year to download and watch clips on their mobile handset.
London buses can change their advertising messages according to their location, thanks to GPS technology being pioneered by U.K. directory service Yell.com, reports Advertising Age. As a bus travels its route, the advertising message will change.
The top 10 Outdoor Advertising Companies (based on 2005 US revenue) according to the Outdoor Advertising Association of America are:
- Clear Channel Outdoor
- CBS Outdoor
- Lamar Advertising Company
- Van Wagner Communications
- JCDecaux
- Fairway Outdoor Advertising
- NextMedia Outdoor
- Magic Media
- Reagan National Advertising
- Burkhart Advertising
Mobile Content is expected to grow from $18bn in 2005 (Informa Telecoms & Media, 2006) to $42.8bn in 2010:
- Music – $11.4bn
- Mobile Games – $11.2bn
- Gambling – $7.6bn
- Adult Content – $2.3bn
- Rest of market – WAP browsing, Infotainment, dating and other applications
Microsoft owns the largest interactive ad agency in the U.S., Avenue A | Razorfish, which it bought in May for $6 billion in cash. That puts Microsoft in the drivers seat for both buying and selling online ads, says AdWeek.
Microsoft’s Advertiser and Publisher Solutions (APS) Group is responsible for building Microsoft’s monetization engine to serve the advertiser and publisher community. The APS team will assume responsibility for building and marketing all ad platforms, including Atlas, DRIVEpm, MSN Direct Response and Microsoft AdCenter, along with emerging media types such as in-game and mobile ads, and the agency arm Avenue A | Razorfish.
Google recently bought New York-based Double-Click for $3 billion. DoubleClick deals in banners, videos and other display ads often intended to promote brands.
Internet advertising is expected to become the largest ad segment in 2011, surpassing newspapers.
Internet, mobile, videogames and digital out-of-home, among others – grew 36.6 percent to $26.53 billion in 2006 and posted a CAGR of 23.9 percent from 2001 to 2006. Traditional advertising spending, however, grew only 2.4 percent to $183.21 billion in 2006.
A $99 IPTV box does digital signage. Tiny video projectors might enable free WiFi at every bus stop, with WiMAX backbones delivering real-time transit maps (and ads). Tavern-Fi, with cell-activated femtocells, might enable free WiFi operators to generate revenue via music videos on demand.
Related DailyWireless stories include; Digital Gas, Cisco Digital Signage, Motorola: It’s All About ME, Clear Channel sells for $27 Billion, Clear Channel Podcasting, Big Media Mobilizes, Fox + Clear Channel, Clear Channel Goes Digital, Municipal Wireless Flash Applications, Hotspot Posters, and Internet Kiosks.
