On this episode of Beyond the Billboard, Greg Wise and I sat down with Prem Parameswaran, CTO at OUTFRONT Media — a 20-year ad-tech veteran who never thought he’d end up in out-of-home. But once he did, everything changed.
What started as a short consulting project turned into a full-time mission to modernize one of advertising’s oldest mediums — and to show marketers why OOH deserves a seat at the digital table.
You know that moment when you realize everything you thought about a channel was wrong?
That’s exactly what happened to Prem Parameswaran when he joined OUTFRONT.
He admits it: “I avoided out-of-home my whole career.”
And that’s what makes his perspective so interesting.
From Ad Tech to Out-of-Home: A Total Mindset Shift
Before OUTFRONT, Prem spent over two decades in ad tech — from programmatic to data activation.
He saw OOH as old-school. Unmeasurable. Static. The opposite of digital.
But after consulting with OUTFRONT, he realized he’d been missing the full picture.
OOH isn’t outdated — it’s one of the last legacy media formats ready for major transformation, much like CTV before its boom.
The Real Problem Isn’t Tech — It’s Perception
Tech can evolve. Measurement and automation will keep improving.
The bigger hurdle is how marketers think about the medium.
Most still picture billboards and gas station screens. Few understand that modern OOH is data-backed, dynamic, and measurable.
As Prem said:
“We’re an industry that’s bought, not sold. We’ve taught people to see our inventory as time and space instead of solutions.”
That’s the shift the industry needs — from selling placements to solving outcomes.
How OUTFRONT’s AWS Partnership Changes the Game
Prem also shared details about OUTFRONT’s new partnership with AWS, which aims to modernize infrastructure and simplify buying.
By integrating real-time inventory, audience data, and measurement into the systems agencies already use, OUTFRONT is making OOH easier to plan and transact — just like digital.
“You can actually leapfrog some of the existing process,” Prem said.
“And that opens the door for true omnichannel planning.”
Once OOH sits next to digital, CTV, and social in a media plan, it’s no longer an afterthought.
The Education Gap
When asked what’s holding OOH back, Prem didn’t hesitate: education.
Many marketers still don’t know how to measure success, or they test the channel once, see limited results, and never return.
But that usually comes down to how it was executed and tracked.
“We need to be out there,” he said. “Not in the back corner of a conference hall. Front and center.”
Changing that perception starts with showing up — and telling the story better.
The Growth Opportunity: Both Big Brands and SMBs
Prem believes growth will come from both enterprise and SMB segments.
Enterprise brands want integrated, experience-led campaigns — building wraps, drone shows, immersive activations.
Smaller brands need self-serve access and clear measurement that proves OOH works.
When both ends of the market see value, the medium expands.
Why This Conversation Matters
Prem’s story is proof that innovation doesn’t always mean inventing something new. Sometimes, it means reimagining what’s already in front of us.
OOH delivers what digital often can’t:
- Real human attention
- Zero bots or fraud
- Experiences that people actually notice
As Prem said, we’re at an inflection point.
OOH is evolving fast — and the marketers who see beyond the billboard will be the ones who win.
🎧 Watch or listen to this episode of Beyond the Billboard featuring Prem Parameswaran wherever you get your podcasts, or on YouTube.