Riley Outdoor’s Robert Moore has built almost 500 billboards in the course of a 30 year career.  He recently sold his compahy to Adams Outdoor.  Last week Robert talked about billboard permitting.  Today he talks about digital billboards.

 What have you learned about digital billboards

They are the future of outdoor.   Statics will always have a place but the future growth of the Billboard industry is digital billboards. Advertisers want the ability to do short term and flexible messages. Advertisers like the ability to have multiple locations for their ads to be seen on multiple digital panels.  They feel like everybody that rides by is looking at a digital billboard.   We get response from digital billboards that we don’t get on statics.  You also don’t have production costs.

Take depreciation in account for digital billboards.

Depreciation is real in the digital billboard business.  A lot of guys put up digitals in marginal locations.  The problem with that is they have to eventually replace or refurbish their digitals at the end of 100,000 hours without getting any more money from their signs.  That’s difficult for an independent.

The reliability of digital billboards

I’ve had one for 17 years.  I put it up around Thanksgiving of 2007.  A Daktronics unit and it is still in service today still looks pretty damn good. I’ve never bought a digital other than Daktronics.  In my opinion they’re they have the best product.  This digital billboard has never received full sunlight so that probably helps the LED’s from degrading.

Have you had to replace anything on that digital?

Nothing major.  We’ve probably replaced four or five modules yeah in 17 years.  We’ve probably cleaned it once or twice.

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