NY Times content debuts on 850 video screens across U.S.

Posted by Savita Sauvin on March 1, 2010 at 4:59 PM

RMG Networks and The New York Times today announced the launch NYTimes.com Today, a digital network of video screens that will feature top headlines, photos and videos from NYTimes.com. The 850 screens are placed in cafes and eateries in New York, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles, reaching six million consumers each month.

As a result of the partnership and extension of The New York Times brand into the medium of video ad networks, the paper will become the sole brand on RMG's Urban Mobile Network. "RMG's strategy is to offer best-in-class video entertainment and information to engage high-value audiences when they are on-the-go. This agreement represents a game-changing offering within both the place-based media sector and the broader ad industry," Garry McGuire, CEO of RMG Networks, said in the press release.

McGuire told MediaWeek that previously RMG had been programming its Urban Mobile Network using programming from multiple sources, such as The Associated Press, San Francisco Chronicle and The New York Times. However, the network was only "close to profitable," he said. "We did a lot of Nielsen research and we discovered that a weakness was that the content was king."

Video ad networks are another digital revenue stream newspapers are looking at tapping into; however, the only other paper with a branded network is the Wall Street Journal.

Yasmin Namini, The Times's senior vice president for circulation and marketing, told The Times that the arrangement with RMG is "a good branding opportunity for NYTimes.com."

The display will feature articles on the left side of the screen and pictures and videos on the right, on a 14-minute cycle. The ads and some of the content will be location-specific. In addition to the first 850 screens, RMG plans to add another 850 over the next few months, some of which might be in additional cities, according to The Times.

The print version of The Times is sold in 70 percent of the screens' locations. McGuire told The Times he hopes that the screens can allow The Times to offer advertisers "a lot of demographic data on the users in the environment."

The ad mix is usually expected to be mostly local advertisers; however, The Times already has many national advertisers who are looking to extend their reach via the screens. McGuire told MediaWeek that he expects the mix to be 50/50 between local and national.

"It's a branding play to a large degree," Murray Gaylord, vice president of marketing for NYTimes.com, told Bloomberg. "We're getting the value of our content to millions of people in a new venue that's very important for us."

McGuire aims to make it the largest "place-based news network" in the United States by this summer, paidContent reported. However, no financial details were disclosed over than news that RMG will bear the cost of building and maintaining its networks, and there will be two 30-second ads every four minutes, as well as promos for subscriptions to The Times.

The inventory sold by RMG will include standard IAB ad units and 30-second full screen spots, each with a 14-minute content loop, MediaWeek reported. RMG is also reported to be in talks with several national chains to bring in NYTimes.com Today content into markets such as Washington, D.C and others.