By David Burrick, Chief Strategy Officer at Intersection

Earlier this month, Volta—the out-of-home advertising–supported network of EV charging stations owned by Shell—announced it would shut down in October. The news was surprising given Shell had only acquired Volta in 2023, and the company had achieved clear product–market fit.

Before the acquisition, Volta’s public filings showed it generated over $50 million annually, proving advertisers were embracing the platform at scale. Real estate owners, mostly suburban strip malls and retail locations, also valued Volta chargers as customer amenities. Consumers appreciated the sleek, easy-to-use charging experience.

So why did Volta fail—and what can the OOH industry learn? Ultimately, despite broad popularity, Volta was undone by a flawed business model: revenue and costs were mismatched.

Volta is not unique. Scaling digital OOH networks is difficult, and even large operators have struggled with revenue–cost balance. Our company has also had our share of these challenges, and we are not alone.

Over the last ten years of building out digital networks, we’ve learned a lot – and here’s how we think about the key drivers of a successful DOOH business model:

Unit Revenue: In digital OOH, site revenue varies widely. Impressions are the main driver, followed by audience quality (income, age, etc.) and competitive supply nearby. Great visibility at roadside is usually the critical differentiator. Roadside screens in the public right of way always generate more impressions, since they benefit from vehicular and pedestrian traffic. Networks in parking lots don’t get that same impression lift, and are often range bound in terms of total yield because they just don’t have sufficient audience.

Unit Cost: Unlike revenue, unit costs are relatively fixed and high. Capex for hardware and installation — especially if there is trenching for power— can easily run $50,000–$100,000 per site. Ongoing refreshes (every 5–10 years) and damage repairs add more. Operating costs—electricity, connectivity, cleaning—are also material, and potentially steep for DOOH screens.

Right-sized deployments: Unit economics weaken at scale. Just as McDonald’s can’t multiply revenue simply by adding restaurants in one city, OOH networks don’t create new demand with new screens—they mostly redistribute existing spend. In mature markets like New York or LA, supply growth often outpaces low single-digit demand growth. Scaling requires asking: what share of total OOH spend can my network capture? Beyond that threshold, marginal screens add cost without net new revenue. Getting the optimal number of screens that can meet demand is crucial. In addition, it’s important to recognize that a traditional static panel might have higher ROI in a given location due to the revenue potential and lower capex and opex (compared to digital).

Network-Wide Costs: Beyond capex and unit ops, networks face overhead—sales, marketing, software, operations—typically 20%+ of revenue. Revenue shares to landlords further compress margins, especially for smaller operators

OOH math can be unforgiving, but the upside for getting the math right is huge. The magic formula for a successful OOH network is great locations with high impressions and revenue potential that provides a strong ROI, a right sized deployment, and rigorous cost controls.

Advertisers, operators, investors, cities, and property owners can all draw lessons. Volta had a strong product and team, but in OOH, that isn’t enough. Without getting the math right,right, advertisers, landlords, and consumers all lose.

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