The largest and greatest of all outdoor screens: iconic DooH sites are prestigious assets for cities. They bring buildings to life and display campaigns that resemble small blockbusters, transcending the label of mere “advertising.”
Piccadilly Lights in London, Coex Atrium in Seoul and, of course, New York’s Times Square – they are among the most iconic digital-out-of-home locations in the world. Anyone who has not yet seen these huge, façade-filling screens live will probably recognize them from social media. The campaigns that are created for these spaces have little in common with regular DooH: they are small works of art that merge with their surroundings.
A playground for the big names
Particularly in Asia and North America, new architectural DooH highlights have emerged in recent years. But the way in which these screens are used has also evolved, with specialized creative studios developing new content production techniques for each different format: In 2024, for instance, Dior had its signature butterflies fly across several synchronized screens with a 3D effect. Samsung teased its Galaxy Unpacked event with simultaneous campaigns on different iconic DooH sites worldwide. And Taylor Swift published individual song lyrics on screens in the USA and UK before midnight each day in the week before the release of her album “Midnights.”
It’s the big brands, artists, and tech companies that use these screens, each time adding more “wow.”
Iconic DooH Networks Around the World
In the current invidis yearbook, we’ve compiled a world map showcasing the largest and most prominent Iconic DooH networks globally. You can explore it starting on page 134 of the “Signage & Software” issue. Click here for a free download!
Creating global momentum
Iconic DooH blurs the boundaries between out-of-home and immersive experiences. A movement that culminated in September 2023 with the opening of the Las Vegas Sphere. The huge LED façade on the oversized spherical shape of the building sparked new ideas for brands and creatives. New-York-based BCN Visuals with Chief Creative Officer Davide Bianca is one of the studios that specializes in iconic DooH sites and was among the first to produce campaigns for The Sphere. For instance, their team was behind Microsoft’s Xbox brand campaign “Power your dreams,” which set two world records at the same time: the first campaign with a 3D effect on a spherical shape and the largest campaign in terms of surface area to date.
“What will get people talking about this? How is the campaign bigger than what they did before?” – Davide Bianca from BCN Visuals
“When you’re dealing with brands like Xbox, Marvel, or Avatar, you have to ask yourself questions like: What will get people talking about this? How is the campaign bigger than what they did before?” Bianca says. What his team conjured up for Microsoft on The Sphere was an anamorphic staging of the Marvel superheroes on the building’s façade, but also an entire event: they invited influencers and VIP guests and booked the hotel rooms in Las Vegas with the best view of The Sphere. This operation ultimately extended the reach from a few thousand live viewers to an online audience of millions.
The social amplification level
Iconic DooH thrives on this extended online reach: a campaign like Microsoft’s is expensive – half a million US dollars is reportedly paid for a day on the Exosphere, which is the official name of The Sphere’s LED façade. These campaigns must therefore be developed in such a way that triggers an immediate “wow” effect with the potential to go viral on social media.
The powerful synergy between social media and iconic DooH was confirmed by a neuroscientific study in 2023 conducted by Piccadilly Lights marketer Ocean Outdoor and the American Neuro-Insight Institute. The study investigated how iconic DooH touchpoints can enhance a social media campaign. The result: when consumers see a brand post on social media, they are 28 percent more likely to notice it if they have already seen it on a large DooH screen.
DooH is therefore an ideal multiplier for social media, and vice versa. This effect amplifies with more innovative, larger, and more experiential campaigns – precisely what iconic DooH screens are designed for.
The content challenge
The challenge is that this wow effect does not scale very well. Every screen – every canvas – needs its own production. For example, BCN Visuals begins each job with what they call a screen study. Part of this prep work often involves finding the “sweet spot” – similar to the best seats in a movie theater, it’s the spot with the optimal view of the screen. The content is adapted precisely for this spot, as this is also where the campaign is recorded for social media.
This sweet spot is especially crucial for animations using the forced perspective technique: the effect of content elements extending from the screen only works from the right angle. With L-shaped screens, this is typically along the extension of the screen’s edge. With The Sphere, it’s hundreds of meters away on the balconies of some big resorts and on Sands Avenue.
Living facades
Iconic DooH surfaces differ from regular roadside screens in another respect: they are part of the architecture of buildings or districts. A prime example is the LED screen that covers the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, illuminating the world’s tallest building during night time. And a 16-hour flight away from Dubai, the Sunset Boulevard network in West Hollywood proves that large free-standing screens can also be architectural highlights.
Media façades and unusual screen formats exert a great fascination in every part of the world. In Europe, however, iconic DooH screens are rare, and when present, they are much smaller. Especially in the DACH region, large moving images in public spaces face opposition from authorities, making permits nearly impossible to obtain. One workaround that media owners are now exploring is green facades with integrated screens. A media façade entwined with green walls could thus become the European equivalent of Iconic DooH.
