Flipbook in the subway
Speeding subway cars turn still images into "spots" in tunnels
For subway passengers in the U.S. cities of Atlanta and Philadelphia, the windows of the subway cars are transformed into screens for commercials. In the process, the flip book celebrates its resurrection: glowing images in the tunnel merge into films at high speed.
Since late September, users of the MARTA (Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority) subway system in Atlanta, Georgia, have been surprised with new visual stimuli on their way to work. Through the dark windows of the subway cars, they see moving neon signs of fresh, sparkling water, the words "Treat yourself well everyday" and the logo of Dasani, the mineral water of the Coca-Cola company, pass by. The spectacle is an innovation in the advertising landscape, created by Coca-Cola in collaboration with Submedia, a New York-based company specializing in outdoor advertising.
To create film effects, Submedia mounted light boxes on the wall of the subway tunnel between the Dunwoody and Sandy Springs stations of the North Line in Atlanta over a length of 300 meters. The illuminated signs look like moving pictures as they pass by - based on the principle of the good old flip book. For subway users, the Dasani images are hardly different from a 20-second TV spot. "We use a series of compressed images and achieve a high number of frames per second that give the impression of a movie," explains Matthew Gross, president of Submedia. The images were designed by Phactory Productions in New York.
The Dasani subway advertising in Atlanta is a test limited to three months. The same subway advertising is also being tested in Philadelphia. In New York, a test on trains from New Jersey to Manhattan was planned at the same time, but the realization of this underground advertising was postponed indefinitely after the attacks on the World Trade Center.
Three companies can offer subway advertising
Since Subway passengers have few alternative options, Submedia hopes to capture the full attention of passengers with its tunnel advertising. The transit systems, in turn, expect this to generate new sources of revenue. Submedia estimates that a transit system such as MARTA in Atlanta could earn $15 million over five years with "tunnel ads," while a larger city with a more widely branched subway network could earn up to $50 million in the same period.
Critics complain that the new technology is misusing another public space for advertising purposes and that Subway passengers are being exposed to inescapable advertising messages without being asked. However, Submedia President Gross counters this: "The moving ad images do not obscure a beautiful view of urban architecture or mountains. This is an industrial environment, it's just dark outside the windows."
Submedia is one of three companies offering subway advertising worldwide. Oxfordshire-based MotionPoster in England is planning similar projects in Budapest, Athens, Seoul, Frankfurt and Munich. Sidetrack Technologies in Winnipeg is creating tunnel ads in Kuala Lumpur and plans additional projects in America.
Since late September, users of the MARTA (Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority) subway system in Atlanta, Georgia, have been surprised with new visual stimuli on their way to work. Through the dark windows of the subway cars, they see moving neon signs of fresh, sparkling water, the words "Treat yourself well everyday" and the logo of Dasani, the mineral water of the Coca-Cola company, pass by. The spectacle is an innovation in the advertising landscape, created by Coca-Cola in collaboration with Submedia, a New York-based company specializing in outdoor advertising.
To create film effects, Submedia mounted light boxes on the wall of the subway tunnel between the Dunwoody and Sandy Springs stations of the North Line in Atlanta over a length of 300 meters. The illuminated signs look like moving pictures as they pass by - based on the principle of the good old flip book. For subway users, the Dasani images are hardly different from a 20-second TV spot. "We use a series of compressed images and achieve a high number of frames per second that give the impression of a movie," explains Matthew Gross, president of Submedia. The images were designed by Phactory Productions in New York.
The Dasani subway advertising in Atlanta is a test limited to three months. The same subway advertising is also being tested in Philadelphia. In New York, a test on trains from New Jersey to Manhattan was planned at the same time, but the realization of this underground advertising was postponed indefinitely after the attacks on the World Trade Center.
Three companies can offer subway advertising
Since Subway passengers have few alternative options, Submedia hopes to capture the full attention of passengers with its tunnel advertising. The transit systems, in turn, expect this to generate new sources of revenue. Submedia estimates that a transit system such as MARTA in Atlanta could earn $15 million over five years with "tunnel ads," while a larger city with a more widely branched subway network could earn up to $50 million in the same period.
Critics complain that the new technology is misusing another public space for advertising purposes and that Subway passengers are being exposed to inescapable advertising messages without being asked. However, Submedia President Gross counters this: "The moving ad images do not obscure a beautiful view of urban architecture or mountains. This is an industrial environment, it's just dark outside the windows."
Submedia is one of three companies offering subway advertising worldwide. Oxfordshire-based MotionPoster in England is planning similar projects in Budapest, Athens, Seoul, Frankfurt and Munich. Sidetrack Technologies in Winnipeg is creating tunnel ads in Kuala Lumpur and plans additional projects in America.
