STAFF REPORTS

The cinema advertising revenues of Cinema Advertising Council (CAC) members grew 18.5% in 2007, to $539,946,000 from $455,661,000 in 2006, according to a CAC report. CAC members account for some 82% of US movie screens, the organization said.

On-screen advertising revenues – approximately 92% of total cinema advertising revenues – increased 18.5%, to $494,622,000 in 2007 from $417,401,000 in 2006, and off-screen revenues grew to $45,324,000 in 2007, an 18.5% increase from $38,260,000 in 2006, according to the report.

On-screen cinema advertising includes commercials airing in advance of movie previews and the feature presentation; off-screen revenues include those derived from audio programming, sampling, special events, concession-based promotions and lobby-based promotions.

Approximately 74% of total revenue is from national or regional advertisers, with growth attributable to increasing activity across a broad spectrum of national advertising categories, including Automotive, Broadcast/Cable, Government/Educational Institutions, Consumer Packaged Goods, Media, Movie Studios, Wireless, Retail/Stores and Telecommunications, CAC said.

CAC attributed off-screen revenue growth to advertisers’ using a variety of media options, including concession-area marketing (up 48%), in-lobby and in-auditorium audio programming (up 207%), and in-lobby sampling programs (up 374%).

Stu Ballatt, president and chairman of the CAC, noted that cinema advertising’s growth in 2007 was also buoyed by revenue growth in local advertising. Leading local advertising categories include Auto Dealerships, Education, Government Services, Media, Medical Health Services, Restaurants, Telecommunications and Universities.

“More advertisers are using cinema more frequently, committing ad dollars ‘upfront’ for multiple flights as cinema has proven its value and efficiency as a sustaining media,” said Ballatt.

“Further, many advertisers are taking advantage of the extensive off-screen options cinema has to offer; used in tandem through integrated campaigns, on-screen advertising combined with off-screen marketing in the theatre can, literally, double or triple the impact a brand can make on the moviegoer.”

The CAC report was independently tabulated by Miller, Kaplan, Arase & Co. LLP, CAC said.

Jennifer Saba

NEW YORK Total advertising revenue for the newspaper industry is expected to decline 11.5% to $40.1 billion this year, according to the Newspaper Association of America.

The organization forecast that by 2009, ad revenue declines would not be as steep — total ad revenue is expected to drop 5.5% to $37.9 billion that year.

The loss of dollars in 2008, which if the NAA proves to be correct will be the largest decline the industry has seen since the association started tracking results 58 years ago, is due to plunges in print advertising. The forecast is in the September issue of Press Time.

But what is very troublesome is the slowdown in online ad revenue growth. The NAA estimates that in 2008, it will still be in positive territory, up a scant 1.8%. In Q2 of this year online ad revenue fell for the very first time, down 2.4%. However, the organization expects that in 2009, online ad revenue will advance 9% — hardly close to the double-digit growth rate of 2007.

Jennifer Saba (jsaba@editorandpublisher.com) is E&P’s associate editor.

Michael Learmonth

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page have long said they won’t sully Google’s page with advertising. But the American landscape? That’s another matter.

The WSJ weighs in on the ongoing re-think taking place at Google over marketing. Mainly, the story is that Google is going to start doing some — and that includes some pretty non-digital approaches, such as roadside billboards to get people to try using the search giant for things other than search.

As Ad Age reported last month, those 800-GOOG-411 billboards were the work of Seattle-based Creature, which also did campaigns for Gmail and Google Maps. Google has been flirting with a number of agencies since it brought on former Ogilvy & Mather exec Andy Berndt to lead marketing efforts last year. At some point, it seems likely Google will want to do some marketing for it’s Web browser, Chrome.

In that same story, Ad Age also noted that Google seems to favor independent shops. The company is already working with Weiden & Kennedy on an outdoor and online campaign in Japan and has tapped it for some U.S. work around Google TV Ads. It tapped Toy, New York, to create a YouTube how-to-guide called a “Tubetorial” that launched earlier this year and Naked Communications is also said to have worked with Google. It has also reached out to the New York offices of Taxi.

The bottom line is that Google’s growth is slowing down. Word-of-mouth and free media was enough to grow the company into a search powerhouse but Google is going to have to spend more than its current $20 million a year on marketing if it wants to move in on big spenders like Microsoft and Apple with new products such as Google Apps and the G1 phone, respectively.

Stuart Elliott

MADISON AVENUE is having an out-of-home experience.

Out-of-home media was once commonly known as outdoor media, reflecting its roots in billboards, posters and signs. The term has been changed to reflect the expansion into places like airports, offices, malls, schools and health clubs, where the ads are inside but not inside the home.

That has also inspired another advertising term, place-based media.

The new places for ads — as well as the addition of digital and video capabilities to signs, bus shelters, phone kiosks and other sites — are among the reasons ad spending in the out-of-home category are second only to online advertising in growth.

The goal is to engage consumers “during the course of their daily lives in places they go on a frequent basis,” said Rick Sirvaitis, president at StoreBoard Media in New York, which puts ads on the security pedestals at the entrances and exits of retail outlets like drug stores.

“In 36 years in advertising, for the first time I can look people in the eye and guarantee every consumer will be exposed to the message,” Mr. Sirvaitis said, referring to a StoreBoard sign, “because you can’t miss it.”

StoreBoard has deals with chains like CVS, Duane Reade and Longs Drug Stores, where ads appear for brands that the stores sell, like Nexxus hair care products, as well as for nonstore advertisers like Broadway shows.

“We’re always looking for places where ads are not expected,” said Greg Corradetti, director for account services at Serino Coyne in New York, an agency owned by the Omnicom Group that is buying StoreBoard to promote shows like “A Chorus Line” and “Mamma Mia!”

“The feedback we get is mainly that it’s noticed, maybe more than other things we do,” Mr. Corradetti said of the ads. “You walk in the store, and before you even get inside it’s right in your face.”

That brings up a common concern about out-of-home media: crossing the fine line between pervasiveness and intrusiveness. The more that ads creep into new locations, the bigger the threat that consumers will be reminded of ad clutter on TV and in other mainstream media.

“The consumer will let us know when it’s too much,” said Wally Brewster, senior vice president for marketing and communications at General Growth Properties in Chicago, which owns more than 200 shopping malls in 45 states. The company displays ads on sites like the “You are here” kiosks in common areas.

“With our in-house research, we’re always engaging our consumers to make sure our environments are relevant and productive for them,” he added.

Beginning on Saturday, General Growth will introduce at 150 properties a promotion called UR Votes Count, aimed at the teenagers who shop at — and hang out in — malls. Exhibits, created by Grand Central Marketing in New York and Los Angeles, will include mock polling places where youngsters ages 13 to 17 can cast ballots in the coming presidential election.

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Sponsors of the promotion include Discover credit cards, SoBe beverages, Chip & Pepper apparel and CosmoGirl magazine. The exhibits are scheduled to remain through Sept. 21 and the vote tallies are to be released.

There is a Web site for the promotion (urvotescount.com), also created by Grand Central Marketing, and a tie-in with Declare Yourself, an organization that encourages civic participation among younger Americans of voting age.

In trying to avoid alienating consumers with too many ads outside the home, “it’s all about balance,” said Ron Greenberg, senior vice president for digital media and chief marketing officer at the TouchTunes Corporation in New York. “You have to be careful.”

Consumers will “give you permission to present your ad” he said, “as long as you’re not disturbing what they’re there to do.”

TouchTunes operates more than 35,000 digital jukeboxes in bars, restaurants and stores, carrying ads from marketers like Sony BMG Music Entertainment, the Universal Music Group, Verizon Wireless and the Warner Music Group.

In another indication of the interest in out-of-home media, deals are reminiscent of those among traditional media companies. For instance, TouchTunes is planning to acquire Barfly Interactive Networks in Austin, Tex., which operates an entertainment network that adds sponsored messages to the TV screens on the walls of about 150 bars and taverns in cities like Chicago, Dallas and Philadelphia.

“We’re digital, we’re interactive, we’re speaking the language of that 21-to-34-year-old” who is prized by marketers of beer, liquor and other beverages, said Bob Weinschenk, president and chief executive at Barfly, which will become an autonomous unit of TouchTunes under its current management.

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Barfly has sponsorship agreements with marketers like Anheuser-Busch, Diageo and Skyy Spirits, which are attracted by the ability of the ads on the Barfly screens “to tell a story over time,” Mr. Weinschenk said, referring to the length of a visit to a bar by a typical customer.

Barfly is also alert to suggestions its ads are clutter, and provides the bars with buttons that can turn off the advertising.

“When you step into one of our bars, we don’t text you, ‘Hello, welcome,’ ” Mr. Weinschenk said. Rather, “it’s about engagement” with consumers, he added, which could be disrupted if they perceive the ads as intrusive.

Press Contact

Anywhere — ORANGE, CA–(Marketwire – January 17, 2008) – Billboard Connection, a media agency specializing in outdoor advertising, has a new franchise at 438 E. Katella Ave., Suite 213, in the City of Orange under the ownership of local attorney and businessman, Rod Bidgoli.

Before becoming a franchise owner, Bidgoli was a corporate attorney for 10 years.

“Discovering Billboard Connection came at a perfect time in my life because I was looking for a new business venture,” says Bidgoli.

Billboard Connection is an advertising agency specializing exclusively in the sale of outdoor advertising such as billboards, bus shelters, cinema media, mall kiosks, mobile billboards, airport displays, sports stadiums, trains and subways. Billboard Connection works with all of the outdoor media companies to obtain the best value and exposure for its clients and provides them with everything necessary to run a successful outdoor advertising campaign, including the graphic design, layout and production of their advertisement. Every aspect of the client’s outdoor advertising campaign will be handled by an outdoor advertising specialist.

Anywhere — /24-7PressRelease/ – BOSTON, MA, June 29, 2008 – Outdoor advertising specialist Billboard Connection today expanded its offerings with the addition of AdsOnFeet to its media portfolio. AdsOnFeet is the innovative provider of walking TV ad campaigns, which feature a team of trained presenters wearing TvVests that grab attention with high-impact video ads.

Building on Billboard Connection’s core business of helping clients more effectively leverage outdoor advertising, AdsOnFeet provides a new and very different advertising option for the media giant to offer its clients, and reinforces the company’s commitment to innovation in advertising.

“AdsOnFeet’s innovative advertising strategies will help our customers increase brand exposure and better engage with their target audience” said Tom Flood, Managing Director of Billboard Connection. “With AdsOnFeet ad walkers, we’re bringing customers a whole new way to look at outdoor advertising. The entire experience is highly interactive and engaging; the presenters walk through the crowd, answering questions and handing out marketing materials and samples. The TvVests get a lot of attention, it’s an exciting example of high-impact, targeted advertising that really attracts eyeballs.”

“Many advertisers are seeking ways to stand out from the pack and better engage their target audience,” said Denise Chew, Senior Partner. “AdsOnFeet will help Billboard Connection’s clients take their message directly to customers where they are – on the street, at sporting events, night clubs, and in busy commuter and tourist areas. We look forward to a long relationship with Billboard Connection.”

About AdsOnFeet
AdsOnFeet provides innovative marketing tools that allow advertisers to engage with customers in areas untapped by traditional marketing media. AdsOnFeet coordinates and executes complete walking video advertising campaigns on an international basis, including TvVest and presenter preparation and deployment, and video consultation and creation. For more information visit www.adsonfeet.com or contact getinfo@adsonfeet.com.

About Billboard Connection
Since 1997, Billboard Connection has helped businesses nationwide locate premium outdoor locations and negotiate affordable prices. The company brings new products and innovative advertising solutions to clients to propel their business and increase their brand awareness to a targeted audience.

Media Post By Erik Sass

In a major victory for outdoor advertisers, the Federal Highway Administration issued a
memorandum last week giving the go-ahead for the installation of digital signage along
the nation’s Interstate highways and other federally subsidized roadways.

Coming amid vociferous objections from some municipal governments, which claim
electronic billboards are a safety hazard, the FHWA decision buoys the hopes of outdoor
advertisers that are betting big on digital signage to drive revenue growth.

The key part of the memorandum from the FHWA, a division of the U.S. Department of
Transportation, says that states are entitled to allow installation of signs that “do not
violate a prohibition against ‘intermittent’ or ‘flashing’ or ‘moving’ lights.” Federal law
distinguishes between these prohibited types of signage, and changeable signage where
messages are displayed for a certain fixed period of time–lessening the likelihood that
drivers will be distracted.

Based on a survey of existing state and federal laws, the
FHWA suggests that: “Duration of each display is generally between 4 and 10 seconds–
8 seconds is recommended.”

LISA CORNWELL, Associated Press Writer

Cincinnati — Wanted posters offering rewards for Jesse James and other outlaws were a common sight in America/country-region />’s Old West. Now a modern twist on that idea is showing up increasingly across the country: wanted billboards.

Many of the billboards, which typically include a suspect’s photo or a sketch drawn from witness descriptions, have resulted in tips leading to an arrest.

Eight of the 10 suspects shown on billboards in the Kansas City Mo./place />, area have been arrested, seven of them because of the billboards, authorities say.

And police in Passaic N.J./place />, say a billboard was instrumental in catching a man charged in the stabbing death of a police officer’s son.

“This is an idea that is working fabulously,” said Lt. James Wood, leader of the Major Crimes Unit of the PassaicCounty/place /> prosecutor’s office.

A high-profile supporter of the billboards is John Walsh, host of Fox’s “America/country-region />’s Most Wanted.”

“We reach a lot of people through television, but billboards are seen daily and serve as a constant reminder,” said Walsh, whose 6-year-old son was kidnapped and murdered in Florida/state /> 24 years ago.

But the billboards raise concerns for Marc Mezibov, a defense attorney in Cincinnati/city />, where the city’s first went up recently.

“If a client’s face and name were posted on billboards ascribing some horrendous crime to him, I would certainly raise issues with the court about whether he could receive a fair trial,” he said, adding that he might request the trial be moved.

Tips from one of the billboards in Kansas City/city /> led to the arrest of a man in the 2002 slaying of 19-year-old Ali Kemp. Roger Kemp, who found his daughter’s body at the swimming pool where she worked, said the idea came to him while driving.

“I was looking at billboards one day and thought, ‘Why not try that since so many people drive by them every day?'” Kemp said.

He asked Lamar Advertising Co. about renting a billboard, but the company offered to donate one to post a suspect sketch and hot line number for anonymous tips. Some billboards also include reward information.

Police were somewhat hesitant at first.

“We thought a generic sketch could create false leads,” said Sgt. Craig Sarver, coordinator of the Crime Stoppers program of the Kansas City Metropolitan Crime Commission.

The billboard was so successful, however, that other area law enforcement agencies have been calling to get photos of their fugitives put on billboards, Sarver said.

So far, advertising companies have donated at least 14 billboards, whose values run from about $1,500 to more than $5,000 each.

The Cincinnati/city /> billboard, donated by Norton Outdoor Advertising, has led to some tips on the whereabouts of Michael Anthony Mitchell, 35, who is charged with shooting a man to death over a parking spot.

“Even if not every subject is caught, this creates a better awareness of crime and the need to do everything possible to stop it,” said Chuck Kreimer, director of Greater Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky Crime Stoppers.

MediaPost Publications – by Erik Sass

THE OUTDOOR AD INDUSTRY CONTINUED its meteoric growth in the first half of 2006. Total revenue expanded 8.2 percent over the same period in 2005 to top $3.5 billion, in line with forecasts from trade organization Outdoor Advertising Association of America. If the industry matches its 8 percent overall annual growth rate in 2005, 2006 revenue could top $6.8 billion by year’s end.

The rise has been due in part to entertainment advertising–including movie and TV promotions–as well as heavy competition between telecommunications providers, says Stephen Freitas, CMO for the OAAA. “Brands are investing more heavily than we anticipated. We’re starting to see an acceleration in ad dollars moving from other traditional media to out-of-home.” Why the shift? Freitas credits continued uncertainty about the future vitality of other media formats. Plus, there is a lot of interest “in using out-of-home to reach consumers when they’re on the go.”

In addition, advertisers are showing special interest in new outdoor ad technologies, including digital signage. Freitas says that while the digital billboard segment is still relatively small, outdoor companies are aggressive: “A lot of outdoor companies tell us that even before a sign is built, it’s sold out more than a year in advance.” By allowing advertisers to display multiple ad faces, these digital billboards can substantially boost revenue. They charge premium prices for certain dayparts–like heavy commuting hours.

Clear Channel Outdoor is also expanding the field.

The company is pushing the envelope with a new technology that allows users to shrink outdoor digital signage to a fraction of the size and power consumption of existing electronic systems. According to Paul Meyer, CEO of Clear Channel Outdoor’s global operations, the new technology, called Magink, is currently being tested in a few locations in Europe by Clear Channel Outdoor and European competitor JCDecaux. Although Magink still hasn’t showed up on outdoor’s bottom line, the new tech could enhance the outdoor boom.

In the Magink system, small plastic tiles are smeared with a specially formulated paste containing helix-shaped molecules one micron long. When exposed to an electrical charge, these molecules move in regular, predictable patterns–which can be calibrated to respond precisely to different wavelengths of light, forming colors and shapes. By varying the electrical input, Magink displays can be changed to showcase myriad images.

Another long-term factor that will sustain the outdoor boom is the desire for increased transparency and accountability in the outdoor market. Freitas says there are “new methods for proof of performance, in which advertisers can see exactly what kind of delivery they’re getting in real time.” The OAAA also recently partnered with Spot Buy Spot to create an XML schema that enables online trading between different types of software and proprietary systems.

THE OUTDOOR AD INDUSTRY CONTINUED its meteoric growth in the first half of 2006. Total revenue expanded 8.2 percent over the same period in 2005 to top $3.5 billion, in line with forecasts from trade organization Outdoor Advertising Association of America. If the industry matches its 8 percent overall annual growth rate in 2005, 2006 revenue could top $6.8 billion by year’s end.

The rise has been due in part to entertainment advertising–including movie and TV promotions–as well as heavy competition between telecommunications providers, says Stephen Freitas, CMO for the OAAA. “Brands are investing more heavily than we anticipated. We’re starting to see an acceleration in ad dollars moving from other traditional media to out-of-home.” Why the shift? Freitas credits continued uncertainty about the future vitality of other media formats. Plus, there is a lot of interest “in using out-of-home to reach consumers when they’re on the go.”

In addition, advertisers are showing special interest in new outdoor ad technologies, including digital signage. Freitas says that while the digital billboard segment is still relatively small, outdoor companies are aggressive: “A lot of outdoor companies tell us that even before a sign is built, it’s sold out more than a year in advance.” By allowing advertisers to display multiple ad faces, these digital billboards can substantially boost revenue. They charge premium prices for certain dayparts–like heavy commuting hours.

Clear Channel Outdoor is also expanding the field.

The company is pushing the envelope with a new technology that allows users to shrink outdoor digital signage to a fraction of the size and power consumption of existing electronic systems. According to Paul Meyer, CEO of Clear Channel Outdoor’s global operations, the new technology, called Magink, is currently being tested in a few locations in Europe by Clear Channel Outdoor and European competitor JCDecaux. Although Magink still hasn’t showed up on outdoor’s bottom line, the new tech could enhance the outdoor boom.

In the Magink system, small plastic tiles are smeared with a specially formulated paste containing helix-shaped molecules one micron long. When exposed to an electrical charge, these molecules move in regular, predictable patterns–which can be calibrated to respond precisely to different wavelengths of light, forming colors and shapes. By varying the electrical input, Magink displays can be changed to showcase myriad images.

Another long-term factor that will sustain the outdoor boom is the desire for increased transparency and accountability in the outdoor market. Freitas says there are “new methods for proof of performance, in which advertisers can see exactly what kind of delivery they’re getting in real time.” The OAAA also recently partnered with Spot Buy Spot to create an XML schema that enables online trading between different types of software and proprietary systems.