OUTFRONT Media hacked, London group makes billboard out of sewage stained money, and how AR experiences make billboards more interactive. A weekly recap of the top OOH stories you may have missed and colorful commentary from BB for the week ending October 26, 2024.
1. OUTFRONT Hacked
On October 16, electronic billboards owned by OUTFRONT Media in a Chicago suburb were hacked. The boards displayed antisemitic messages, including “F*** Israel” and “DEATH TO ISRAEL,” against a Palestine Flag background.
OUTFRONT Media responded quickly and had the billboards shut down almost immediately. They have confirmed the hack and issued statements addressing the incident.
B.B.’s Take: Heavy takeover by hackers on OUTFRONT digitals. If this can happen to one of the Big 3, I’m pretty darn sure it can happen to any OOH Owner. What is the solution?
2. Provocative ‘Pooster’ of Crap Stained Money
River Action wanted the six-meter-wide special build made using fake £50 notes and stained brown with sterilized waste from polluted sources across the UK to symbolize water companies’ dirtied profits at the environment’s expense.
B.B.’s Take: Social statements by non-profits against corporate and state organizations are very effective in any community. I am surprised we don’t see more of this, especially in the US. OOH is so striking and inescapable. All the measurement, programmatic and similar holy grail solutions to the success of OOH pales to OOH’s most effective characteristics BIG, BOLD, OMNIPRESENT, INESCAPABLE; it’s the creative!
3. Augmented Reality Billboards: Creating Interactive Brand Experiences in Real Time
AR billboard creation uses 3D engines that were originally used for video game development. They allow the creation of detailed, interactive, and immersive environments.
BrandXR uses these engines to design interactive scenes that blend seamlessly with real-world elements. Computer vision and image tracking technologies allow AR billboards to detect and respond to user interactions in real-time, allowing people to engage with the billboard directly.
B.B.’s Take: Using the big screens to further the experiences of the viewers. Leveraging the small screens to further the message and impact for brands. Time to look into and act on Augmented Reality in your next OOH campaign.