Outfront Media partnered with Turner Broadcasting and Mediavest, to bring streaming digital content into the New York City subway. The team rolled out ten 72-inch, portrait-format LCD displays in high-visibility mezzanine locations. This marks the first long-term digital deployment of its kind in that environment.
Nominating Company: MRI; Alpharetta, Georgia
Venue: Outfront Media (formerly CBS Outdoor); Maspeth, New York
Partners: Diversified Media Group, integrator; DynaServ, installation; Transit Wireless, data connectivity
Project: Digital dioramas
Category: Transportation
BACKGROUND
Turner wanted a standout setting to deliver dynamic, high-impact messaging in a place packed with daily foot traffic. Starting in February 2014, the displays ran network promotions and live feeds, especially Turner’s March Madness coverage. At the same time, the campaign required display exclusivity to protect Turner’s marketing goals.
Turner Broadcasting and Mediavest wanted a unique environment where they could deliver dynamic digital content in highly visible, high-traffic locations. As a result, the displays helped promote several Turner networks, including CNN, TBS, Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, TNT, Headline News, Turner Sports, Turner Classic Movies, and truTV. The displays deployed February 2014 in the New York City subway. The immediate and urgent goal was to stream digital content and live feeds of Turner’s coverage of March Madness of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Playoffs. Because of those campaign goals, display exclusivity became a critical requirement for Turner Broadcasting.
CHALLENGES
The subway system operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. However, the installation also had to avoid disrupting daily subway ridership. Therefore, crews completed the work after the evening rush and continued past midnight over numerous nights. Infrastructure presented other unique challenges in a 100-plus year old transportation system. The project required dedicated electrical circuits to assure the integrity of the power feed to the displays.
The bandwidth requirement to provide streaming content required 10Mb data circuits, and were provisioned by Transit Wireless. Currently, Transit Wireless is in the process of providing Wi-Fi connectivity in the subway system. In addition, painstaking attention to detail was critically important to ensure and assure the integrity of each installation in consideration of historic mosaic tiling and existing infrastructure to other systems in the subway environment.
SOLUTIONS
Outfront Media set clear requirements for reliability and durability, and MRI delivered a display approach built for constant public access. The team minimized and concealed service access with security hardware. The faces of the displays were supplied with multi-layered laminated gorilla glass for safety and deterrence of potentially tampering. Data lines and power lines were concealed and contained in keeping with governing code.
RESULTS
The deployment didn’t just run—it drew attention in the most New York way possible: people stopped, gathered, and watched live March Madness action right in the subway. The project earned industry recognition when Outfront Media won the DSE 2015 Silver Apex Installation Award in the Transportation category.
Outfront Media won the DSE 2015 Silver Apex Installation Award in the Transportation category.