Oct 2, 2008
Fuelcast and Bhootan Merge to Form Outcast – New Digital Out of Home Platform Reaches On-the-Go Consumers at Multiple Touch Points Throughout the Day
Digital Media Powerhouse Provides Advertisers with Unprecedented Reach and Measurability
Santa Monica, Calif. – Oct. 2, 2008 – Fuelcast, the most measurable at-the-pump digital network, and Bhootan, a leading digital out of home media company in the retail sector, announced today their merger to form Outcast (www.Outcast.net) – the first digital out of home company to offer advertisers unparalleled, interactive access to a national footprint of on-the-go consumers. With a monthly reach of over 25 million consumers in over 900 locations, Outcast delivers high quality programming and targeted advertising to nearly 6,000 digital LCD screens with rich audio in high traffic locations, including:
- At the pump: Outcast reaches captive consumers while fueling their vehicles. Outcast has exclusive corporate relationships with Shell, ConocoPhillips and Holiday Stationstores and has partnered with NBC Universal to provide entertaining and engaging content to consumers at the pump.
- Shopping: Outcast reaches consumers while shopping at local retail stores, including Walgreens, Sears, Kmart, Albertsons, Stop N’ Shop and more.
- Dining: Outcast reaches consumers while dining in local quick serve restaurants, including Carl’s Jr. and McDonald’s.
- On-the-go with mobile: Outcast reaches consumers on their mobile devices with timely offers and entertaining content.
In addition to offering the most comprehensive network to reach consumers throughout the day, Outcast is pioneering new standards in measurability, targeting and mobile interactivity:
- Measurability: At the pump, Outcast’s patented activation technology welcomes consumers and initiates programming when the pump handle is lifted, allowing for detailed measurability for advertisers.
- Targeting: At retail, Outcast offers local targeting down to an individual location or screen, providing advertisers with the flexibility to hyper-target their campaigns and improve consumer relevance.
- Mobile interactivity: Outcast’s integrated mobile platform connects with consumers on their mobile devices, allowing them to download, in real-time, advertiser offers and other premium content. These offers are localized and relevant for each consumer based on their location and time of day, creating another powerful touch point.
John McLean, CEO of Fuelcast, will become chairman of Outcast. Matthew Stoudt, cofounder and CEO of Bhootan, will become CEO and Nathan Gill, co-founder and president of Bhootan will become chief media officer.
"With this merger, Outcast leads the consolidation of a fragmented digital out of home market, significantly increasing our reach and making it easier than ever to execute a comprehensive out of home buy," said McLean. "The merger will allow us to continue to expand our leadership position by accelerating growth into new markets and distribution partners."
"The combination of these two companies gives Outcast unparalleled capabilities to deliver a rich, interactive consumer experience," said Stoudt. "Bhootan’s significant retail experience combined with Fuelcast’s national presence enables Outcast to reach the highly valuable onthe- go consumer at almost any point in their daily lives, offering unprecedented access to these consumers in an environment free from channel changing or ad-skipping." "We understand the importance of ROI to advertisers and have developed the network with this goal in mind,” said Gill. “Outcast is closing the chasm between TV and online by offering the rich media experience of TV with the targeting and measurability of online."
About Outcast
Outcast is one of the largest digital out of home networks, reaching valuable on-the-go consumers at multiple touch points throughout the day. Outcast boasts the most measurable at-the-pump digital network and an extensive retail network, with partners that include Shell, ConocoPhillips, Holiday Superstations, Walgreens, Sears, Kmart, Albertsons, Stop N’ Shop and others. With a reach of more than 25 million consumers in over 900 locations, Outcast delivers high quality programming and targeted advertising to nearly 6,000 digital LCD screens with rich audio in high traffic locations. Outcast is privately held and is headquartered in Santa Monica, Calif. For more information, please visit www.Outcast.net.
Vicky Nave
