It's been claimed that New South Wales is relaxing laws governing digitally animated billboards as evidence is being produced that driver distraction by such billboards is a non issue.
New South Wales has banned ads with moving or video images within sight of roads, citing them as a distraction to drivers, but the Outdoor Media Association said Queensland was testing new digital outdoor platforms and NSW was close to doing so.
Nir Hadad, head of independent outdoor operator Octopus, which has rolled out a suite of LED-screen outdoor advertising sites in Victoria, said local and state government fears that digital signage could cause accidents was unfounded and he hoped that NSW would soon approve such displays.
The Outdoor Media Association is drafting new digital advertising guidelines to propose for adoption in New South Wales, proposing eight-second ad times, while state authorities are pushing for 90 seconds.
Outdoor Media Association
www.oma.org.au
