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Ocean Outdoor has evolved into a free-to-air sports broadcaster in recent years, offering large-screen coverage of major events like the Euros, Olympics, Paralympics, and Wimbledon. What led to this shift, and how did it begin?
Our journey into live “rights holder” content began in 2016 when we partnered with the British Fashion Council to broadcast live catwalk shows from London Fashion Week across our full-motion screen network, sponsored by L’Oreal.
As Digital Out of Home (DOOH) technology rapidly advanced, we saw an opportunity to offer our “on-the-go” audiences more than just commercial content by collaborating with landlords and agencies in premium outdoor spaces.
The key was securing official partnerships with content rights holders. In the summer of 2016, we broadcast highlights from the Rio Olympics across our network as an official partner of Team GB. By 2021, we launched our first Team GB fan zone at Westfield London.
Now, eight years later, we have secured four Olympic partnerships, including with ParalympicsGB, Special Olympics GB, and DeaflympicsGB. We are also an official fan zone host for Paris 2024, featuring nine Team GB fan zones and six ParalympicsGB fan zones, all managed by Ocean Labs.
We continue our exclusive agreement with The All England Club to broadcast highlights and live coverage of The Wimbledon Championships, presenting seven official Wimbledon Experiences across the UK this year.
Ocean’s fan zones
Ocean offers a unique advantage by extending the reach of official partners into Out of Home (OOH) spaces, targeting valuable audiences who are light TV viewers and often on the move.
Our proprietary Neuroscience research during the 2019 Wimbledon Championships revealed that OOH advertising messages placed next to Wimbledon content were viewed over four times longer and had higher emotional engagement compared to standard commercial loops.
Now, Ocean provides official brand partners access to multiple fan zones across the UK, allowing them to create immersive experiences that bring new and existing consumers closer to the brand. Brands like Aldi, NatWest, GetPRO, and TikTok have effectively leveraged our flagship fan experiences.
Measuring public response
The 22 official fan zones we are hosting this year are strategically located in hybrid environments with high organic footfall. Fans gather to watch global sporting events with colleagues, family, and friends in enhanced outdoor settings that are free to enter and enjoy.
The increased footfall in these OOH environments indicates growing demand for such experiences, a trend we are now measuring with new consumer research that builds on our 2019 study.
Interactive elements and future developments
Technology has always been crucial to the success of DOOH campaigns, and it will continue to enhance the fan experience. Whether through big-screen games against fans in other cities, uploading personal experiences to the big screen, or sending good luck messages to athletes, technology is key.
This year, we are further experimenting with different formats. At Team GB House in Paris, we are offering a mixed reality experience centered around a digital six-sheet, transforming visitors into medal-winning athletes and capturing the spirit and enthusiasm of the Games.
OOH as a broadcast medium
Out of Home has been described as the last broadcast medium, especially with the decline of linear TV. Ocean, in its role as a broadcaster during major sporting events, is tapping into this capability. However, I believe the lack of uniformity across the OOH industry means that brands do not view DOOH in the same light as linear TV.
Ocean’s strategy is to create an integrated digital screen experience that delivers both visual and audience impact. We now offer brands a unique channel in the “screen universe” to associate with premium rights holder content on a large scale.
This approach benefits all stakeholders by increasing reach and exposure for rights holders and broadcasters while offering official sponsors valuable access to a hard-to-reach audience. Most importantly, it provides outdoor audiences with the immersive and interactive experiences they expect and enjoy.