Out-of-Home Is the Last Scaled Reach Medium Standing, Says Clear Channel CMO
CANNES, France — Out-of-home advertising remains the only truly scaled reach medium available to marketers, according to one industry executive.
The difference now is that billboards and transit advertising have evolved far beyond simple static displays. Data capabilities allow marketers to plan, measure and optimize campaigns with the same precision they expect from digital channels.
“Instead of talking about displays or inventory or signs, we’re talking about audiences and outcomes,” said Dan Levi, CMO of Clear Channel Outdoor, in this video interview with Beet.TV.
New York footprint expands through transit deals
Clear Channel has significantly expanded its presence in the New York market through contracts with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Metropolitan Transit Authority. The Port Authority deal covers all four New York area airports, while the MTA contract includes more than 300 billboards on above-ground property throughout the city.
Both contracts have created opportunities to modernize aging infrastructure. Passengers flying through LaGuardia Airport have experienced the transformation firsthand, with digital signage improving both the passenger experience and the advertising environment.
“New York is a very, very challenging market when it comes to building billboards or converting them to digital,” Levi said. “Lots of regulation, lots of red tape. But through our contract with the MTA, it gives us the ability to bring more digital media.” The company’s existing digital network already reaches one in three New York City residents monthly.
Measurement platform proves real business outcomes
The company launched its RADAR measurement platform nine years ago, which Levi described as a game changer for customer engagement. The platform was built to help marketers understand physical-world movement and behaviors, then connect those patterns to out-of-home advertising exposure.
Initial capabilities focused on straightforward metrics like proving that billboard exposure led to store visits. The platform has since expanded to measure impact on web visitation, app downloads, video viewing across linear and connected television, and pharmaceutical advertising returns.
“I literally came over here from a meeting with a client who came in thinking that billboards were a nice to have medium,” Levi said. “Came away from it with a follow up to do a deep dive with his data analytics team to talk about ways that we can help better inform their model.”
Industry-wide measurement continues to advance
The out-of-home industry has seen broader measurement improvements through organizations like Geopath, the OAAA and Ipsos. However, Levi cautioned against framing this as entering a “new era,” preferring to describe it as continued improvement along a continuum of change.
The data and analytics advances have helped connect out-of-home to digital and performance media in ways previously impossible. According to eMarketer, OOH revenues reached a record $9.46 billion in 2025, with digital out-of-home accounting for 36.3% of total revenues and growing 10.5% year-over-year.
“I think of everything that we’ve done with data and data analytics is helped us connect out of home to digital and performance media in a way that you haven’t been able to in the past,” Levi said.
Community impact becomes part of the value proposition
Clear Channel recently launched an initiative called Clear Channel Impact, designed to help brands direct a portion of their advertising investment toward community causes. The program recognizes that most brands maintain CSR budgets or support non-profits, and creates a structured way to incorporate that into media partnerships.
Under the program, advertisers receive full media value for their investment while Clear Channel repurposes a portion toward community impact. This can take several forms, from direct funding of non-profits to production of social media content or on-the-ground activation.
“The idea is it gets us to working with brands in ways that we can deliver not only measurable, positive business outcomes, but actually give back to our community in a way that works for the brands and works for the people that they’re trying to reach,” Levi said.
CANNES, France — Out-of-home advertising remains the only truly scaled reach medium available to marketers, according to one industry executive.
The difference now is that billboards and transit advertising have evolved far beyond simple static displays. Data capabilities allow marketers to plan, measure and optimize campaigns with the same precision they expect from digital channels.
“Instead of talking about displays or inventory or signs, we’re talking about audiences and outcomes,” said Dan Levi, CMO of Clear Channel Outdoor, in this video interview with Beet.TV.
New York footprint expands through transit deals
Clear Channel has significantly expanded its presence in the New York market through contracts with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Metropolitan Transit Authority. The Port Authority deal covers all four New York area airports, while the MTA contract includes more than 300 billboards on above-ground property throughout the city.
Both contracts have created opportunities to modernize aging infrastructure. Passengers flying through LaGuardia Airport have experienced the transformation firsthand, with digital signage improving both the passenger experience and the advertising environment.
“New York is a very, very challenging market when it comes to building billboards or converting them to digital,” Levi said. “Lots of regulation, lots of red tape. But through our contract with the MTA, it gives us the ability to bring more digital media.” The company’s existing digital network already reaches one in three New York City residents monthly.
Measurement platform proves real business outcomes
The company launched its RADAR measurement platform nine years ago, which Levi described as a game changer for customer engagement. The platform was built to help marketers understand physical-world movement and behaviors, then connect those patterns to out-of-home advertising exposure.
Initial capabilities focused on straightforward metrics like proving that billboard exposure led to store visits. The platform has since expanded to measure impact on web visitation, app downloads, video viewing across linear and connected television, and pharmaceutical advertising returns.
“I literally came over here from a meeting with a client who came in thinking that billboards were a nice to have medium,” Levi said. “Came away from it with a follow up to do a deep dive with his data analytics team to talk about ways that we can help better inform their model.”
Industry-wide measurement continues to advance
The out-of-home industry has seen broader measurement improvements through organizations like Geopath, the OAAA and Ipsos. However, Levi cautioned against framing this as entering a “new era,” preferring to describe it as continued improvement along a continuum of change.
The data and analytics advances have helped connect out-of-home to digital and performance media in ways previously impossible. According to eMarketer, OOH revenues reached a record $9.46 billion in 2025, with digital out-of-home accounting for 36.3% of total revenues and growing 10.5% year-over-year.
“I think of everything that we’ve done with data and data analytics is helped us connect out of home to digital and performance media in a way that you haven’t been able to in the past,” Levi said.
Community impact becomes part of the value proposition
Clear Channel recently launched an initiative called Clear Channel Impact, designed to help brands direct a portion of their advertising investment toward community causes. The program recognizes that most brands maintain CSR budgets or support non-profits, and creates a structured way to incorporate that into media partnerships.
Under the program, advertisers receive full media value for their investment while Clear Channel repurposes a portion toward community impact. This can take several forms, from direct funding of non-profits to production of social media content or on-the-ground activation.
“The idea is it gets us to working with brands in ways that we can deliver not only measurable, positive business outcomes, but actually give back to our community in a way that works for the brands and works for the people that they’re trying to reach,” Levi said.
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