Retail
Retail is one of the most lucrative markets for interactive OOH advertising because malls and retail stores provide a captive audience of individuals who are already in the right frame of mind to buy. Point-of-purchase advertising, which is currently a $19 billion industry in the U.S., allows marketers to capitalize on impulse purchases. There is a plethora of flat panel screens appearing in these segments, often presenting messages in engaging ways.
One of the biggest players is Reactrix, which has a network of interactive and immersive media displays primarily located in malls. Their digital projections consist of branded visual content that responds to individuals who walk or gesture over the display area. They have worked with a variety of brands, including Xbox, Coke, Wells Fargo and Visa, which recently used Reactrix to launch a segment of its "Life Takes Visa" campaign that allowed consumers to "paint" with different colored blobs of virtual paint on an interactive mat. Reactrix's ability to engage consumers has led to very high unaided recall rates. While passive digital media (signage) prevails in this space, there is plenty of room for growth for interactive OOH advertising here.
Transit
Advertising in buses, trains and taxis is a tried-and true way to reach commuters and other travelers when they're insulated from most other marketing messages. In New York City, passengers in many taxis find themselves face to face with digital TVs, courtesy of Clear Channel Taxi Media and NBC Universal. In addition to keeping passengers informed with exclusive and timely content from WNBC, the news networks of NBC (NBC News, MSNBC, CNBC) and NBC Entertainment, NY10 Taxi Entertainment Network provides sponsors with the opportunity to run ads on its interactive network that are targeted to an engaged audience with easy access to the medium. One distinct advantage to advertisers is that the program only runs when the meter is turned on, so they are only paying when at least one person is within two feet of the screen and able to interact with the ads.