Platinum OBIE Award goes to Space Invaders

The Out of Home Advertising Association of America (OAAA) has announced the winners of the 82nd annual OBIE Awards. The OBIE Awards were co-hosted by OAAA’s EVP of Strategy & Growth Jeff Jan and Digital Prophet & Industry Luminary David Shing. The awards were presented during an in-person ceremony held at the 2024 OOH Media Conference in Carlsbad, CA. Winners were revealed across five tiers: Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Craft, along with recipients of a new Student OBIE Awards and the OBIE Hall of Fame.

“From spectacular digital signage and inventive transit takeovers to eye-popping billboard campaigns and state-of-the-art AR and experiential programmes, this year’s OBIE Award winners truly raised the bar for what our medium is capable of today,” said Anna Bager, President and CEO, OAAA. “We’re excited to celebrate this talented group of creative thinkers and innovators who are pushing the limits on what’s possible and helping move our industry forward.”

This year’s top honour, the Platinum OBIE Award, went to a collaborative effort between Taito, Google, Unit9, and OUTFRONT XLabs for the Space Invaders “World Defense” 45th Anniversary Immersive AR experience, an interactive game where players worked together to save the planet. The experience uniquely harnessed the innovative potential of digital out of home to bring digital battles to the real world and reach players across the globe.

In addition to key awards, this year’s OBIE Hall of Fame award, which was voted on by OAAA’s membership, went to Dunkin’ for their consistently exceptional creative work and continued investment in OOH over the years. For decades, Dunkin’ has relied heavily on OOH to create buzz, build awareness, and drive sales. With its reputation for fun, witty and often quirky campaigns that are heavy on imagery and short on copy – perfect for the larger-than-life canvas the medium provides – Dunkin’s keen understanding of OOH is sure to keep the brand relevant for many more years to come.

Gold OBIE Awards were presented in the following categories:

3D Anamorphic Digital [NEW]

• Nike – Jordan Brand and Billups for AJ1 Next Chapter

Buzzworthy

• Warner Bros. Pictures and Midnight Oil for Barbie Box Standee

Custom Installation

• Pizza Inn and BooneOakley for Pizza Inn: Bambi & Friends

Integrated Multi-Media

• Nike and Colossal Media for Nike x Sacai Go Find Out

Interactive (Online Integration)

• Taito, Google, Unit9, and OUTFRONT XLabs for Space Invaders “World Defense” 45th Anniversary Immersive AR

International

• Activision Blizzard and Diva for Activision Diablo’s Projection Mapping Murals
• The Coca-Cola Company – Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, WPP, Wavemaker, Moving Images, and Ocean Labs for Best Coke Ever: The Giant Vending Machine

Local [NEW]

• The New York Times for NYT All Access Train Takeover

Automotive

• Hyundai of Dothan and up to something for Hyundailiens

Consumer Products & Goods

• Cigar City Brewing, Jai Alai Beer, CANarchy, and Sterling-Rice Group for The Best Beer You Probably Can’t Pronounce

Consumer Services

• UPS, The UPS Store, The Martin Agency, and BCN Visuals for Small Businesses – Under The Shield

Direct to Consumer

• YETI for For Every Single Use

Fashion & Luxury Goods

• Columbia Sportswear, Lightbox, and Monster XP for Columbia’s AR Dressing Room

Film & Media

• Warner Bros. Pictures, BLT, Midnight Oil, and Hearts & Science for Barbie Theatrical Campaign

Live Entertainment, Events & Gaming

• The Great Allentown Fair and Adams Outdoor Advertising for The Great Allentown Fair – No A.I.

Public Service & Nonprofits

• Great Outdoors Colorado/Generation Wild and Sukle Advertising & Design for Share This Wonder-full World

Transit

• The New York Times for NYT All Access Train Takeover

Combined Multi-OOH Formats

• Netflix, Legion Creative, Aspect, Midnight Oil, and Rapport for LEO

Murals [NEW]

• Adidas, Jellyfish, and GroupM for Originals

STUDENT OBIE Winners:

As the newest addition to this year’s awards program, the Student OBIE Awards looked to recogniSe the best and brightest of up-and-coming talent in the out of home industry. These students’ work is exemplary of the creative and technological advancements within the OOH medium. Student OBIE Awards were presented to:

GOLD: Luke Maksymetz, Kendall College of Art and Design for Don’t Be Scared. Be PreEP-ared.

SILVER: Sarah Schafer, Kendall College of Art and Design for Stay Safe Out There

BRONZE: Central Michigan University Graphic Design Class of 2023 for Out of Place – The Place to Be

OBIE Award winners were hand-picked by a distinguished panel of jurors, led by Jaime Robinson, co-founder and Chief Creative Officer of JOAN. This year’s jury included:

• Marc Bartholomew, SVP of Out of Home buying division, dentsu
• Jeff Benjamin, Chief Creative Officer, Tombras
• Andrew Brunton, Managing Director, EMEA, Billups
• Pancho Cassis, Partner and Global Chief Creative Officer, DAVID
• Michael Lebowitz, Founder and Executive Chairman, SPCSHP
• Peipei Lin, VP of Marketing, RIMOWA
• Christine Lustig, Media Lead, Meta
• Randi Stipes, Chief Marketing Officer, The Weather Company

“It was an honoUr to get a front-row seat to the creativity and innovation defining the out of home space at the moment. This year’s OBIE winners not only show us how the OOH medium has evolved but where it’s going,” said Robinson. “This year’s winners did what only great OOH can do best — reminded us we’re alive in the world, and that it’s a beautiful and exciting thing to be here.”