OUTFRONT and Snapchat Launch AR Format in Times Square
OUTFRONT Media and Snapchat have introduced a new advertising format that combines augmented reality with digital out-of-home media, launching in New York’s Times Square with a campaign promoting the third season of House of the Dragon.
The format, known as Crowd Created, allows visitors to appear live on Times Square billboards through an augmented reality experience powered by Snapchat technology and OUTFRONT’s XLabs innovation division.
The debut campaign was developed in partnership with HBO Max and centres on an interactive installation in Times Square. Visitors may engage with a four-sided Snapchat AR Mirror and use custom House of the Dragon lenses designed for the activation.
The lenses place participants within the world of the television series through augmented reality effects. As part of the experience, users can see themselves wearing Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen’s crown in a virtual environment inspired by the show.
Participants who opt in can have their augmented reality experience displayed live on OUTFRONT’s Duffy Duo billboards. The displays are among the most prominent digital advertising screens in Times Square and provide public visibility for the user-generated content created through the activation.
The initiative combines Snapchat’s augmented reality capabilities with OUTFRONT XLabs’ XTend technology. XTend is used to integrate augmented reality experiences into out-of-home advertising campaigns, enabling digital content to be connected with physical advertising locations.
The Crowd Created format combines augmented reality, outdoor advertising, and live public participation into a single campaign. The installation allows members of the public to interact directly with branded content and then view the results on large-format digital screens in a highly visible public setting.
The activation is taking place in one of the busiest pedestrian areas in the United States. Approximately 400,000 people pass through Times Square each day. The location provides a large audience for the installation and for the billboard displays generated through the experience.
OUTFRONT stated that the campaign combines Snapchat’s augmented reality technology, HBO Max’s House of the Dragon intellectual property and the company’s digital media assets in Times Square. The company said the activation uses technology and physical advertising infrastructure to create an interactive experience linked to the television series.
Snap stated that augmented reality has an important role in how Snapchat users relate to their surroundings through the platform. The company said the partnership with HBO Max and OUTFRONT brings that technology into Times Square through an experience that places participants within the setting of House of the Dragon and displays them on large digital advertising screens.
HBO and HBO Max stated that the campaign was designed to give fans a direct connection to the series through an interactive experience. The company said the partnership uses augmented reality technology to place participants within the world of House of the Dragon and present that interaction on a large public display.
The collaboration joins a growing number of advertising campaigns that combine digital technology with physical environments. In this case, the activation uses augmented reality tools, public displays and audience participation as part of a campaign tied to the launch of a television series.
The Times Square installation is supported by a two-week promotional campaign running across OUTFRONT’s advertising network in New York. The campaign is taking place ahead of the 21 June premiere of House of the Dragon Season 3 on HBO Max.
The activation in Times Square also forms part of a wider marketing campaign for the series. Additional promotional activity includes a screening event in Santa Monica organised for Snapchat creators.
The launch marks the first use of the Crowd Created format. Through the combination of Snapchat’s augmented reality technology, OUTFRONT’s advertising network and HBO Max’s promotional campaign, visitors to Times Square can participate in an interactive experience and see the results displayed live on digital billboards in one of the world’s most recognised advertising locations.
