RSS Feeds
Gadgets
Walgreens Building Time Square's Largest Billboard
Posted by Mark Wilson at 7:20 AM on May 28, 2008
We don't normally think of glitz when we think of Walgreens, but maybe that's entirely the point. The company is building the world's "most complex, powerful and digitally advanced" sign to hover over their new flagship store. And 5 kms of it is covered with 12 million LEDs capable of producing a trillion colours. But that's only part of the sign.
113 tonnes in weight, the entire sign spans 4,000 square metres when including vinyl components. That easily trumps the old Times Square champion from NASDAQ, which covered a suddenly modest 1,000 square metres.
Cumulatively, all of this sign will cover three sides of 1 Times Square with a solitary animation. Never has a sale on pantyhose been so grossly over-promoted. [NYTimes via BBGadgets]
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
TurboFool
Posted 3:11 AM 29/5/08
It's "TimeS Square," not "Time Square." As in the New York TimeS.
TurboFool
highfloydelity
Posted 2:55 AM 29/5/08
Boo Walgreens.. you suck.
highfloydelity
lpranal
Posted 12:57 AM 29/5/08
Wow! Now they can show life-sized pictures of rosie o donnell! This will open up a whole new world of sponsorship for her.
note to advertisers - CAN should not be confused with SHOULD*
lpranal
UofITom
Posted 12:04 AM 29/5/08
Goddamn, I wonder who approved this...
brb, making some calls.
UofITom
Linux_all_the_way
Posted 7:25 PM 28/5/08
Great the world can always has the need for more advertising being blasted at us.
Linux_all_the_way
LindsayJoy
Posted 5:11 PM 28/5/08
@OMG! Ponies!:
Just what I was thinking, don't they know Duane Reade has a monopoly over the city for pharmacies even worse then Starbucks has for Coffee?
I guess they want to remind all the tourists to fill their Viagra and Prosac scripts at Wallgreens when they get home...or somethin'.
LindsayJoy
OMG! Ponies!
Posted 12:47 PM 28/5/08
@pdditty: Which people will walk by as they patronize any one of the 1,000 other Duane Reade stores in the city.
Maybe Rabid Penguin is right - make giant screens, use said screens to give people seizures, and then sell those people Dilantin and Tegretol afterwards.
OMG! Ponies!
techwhiz140
Posted 12:45 PM 28/5/08
@carmen89: So do I, they're my favorite pharmacy.
techwhiz140
CutePuppyz
Posted 12:15 PM 28/5/08
Where did Wallgreens get all that money?
CutePuppyz
Turing_Machine
Posted 11:39 AM 28/5/08
Great. Now I'll never get anything done at work.
Turing_Machine
pdditty
Posted 10:21 AM 28/5/08
@OMG! Ponies!: the article says that the the billboard will be over their "flagship" NYC store.
pdditty
92BuickLeSabre
Posted 9:35 AM 28/5/08
@twoeightnine: Flags?
And ships?
92BuickLeSabre
GiltProto
Posted 9:33 AM 28/5/08
Wow, I guess you can makes lots of profit when 95% percent of the stuff in your store is crap made in China.
GiltProto
twoeightnine
Posted 9:22 AM 28/5/08
What exactly does a Walgreens flagship store carry in addition to a normal store's products?
twoeightnine
phantam
Posted 9:04 AM 28/5/08
hmm wudda figured it to be walmart instead of walgreens doing this
phantam
LUV2CattleCall
Posted 8:40 AM 28/5/08
About damn time they switched to visual paging when your Rx is filled! I'm getting tired of "Block, Ryan, your Levitra is ready for pickup, Block, Ryan" blaring on the loudspeaker when I'm in the area..
LUV2CattleCall
itscarmennnn
Posted 8:20 AM 28/5/08
@Rabid Penguin: the latter for sure!
itscarmennnn
ripfire4
Posted 8:10 AM 28/5/08
@Rabid Penguin: Well they're going to need it if they want to display your name on a list when your prescription is ready.
ripfire4
Rabid Penguin
Posted 8:06 AM 28/5/08
@OMG! Ponies!: Those companies may be able to compete in the pharmacy market, but Walgreens is kicking their asses in the giant LED marquee market. And what do people really want more of, drugs or giant scrolling text describing drugs?
Rabid Penguin
Monty
Posted 8:05 AM 28/5/08
I can't wait to book my next flight to NY to see -- the Walgreens billboard? Really? How much money are they making on those prescriptions, anyway?
Monty
OMG! Ponies!
Posted 7:57 AM 28/5/08
Wouldn't the money be better spent building actual Walgreens in New York City instead of letting Duane Reade, Rite-Aid, and CVS, take the 9 million person market?
OMG! Ponies!
Rabid Penguin
Posted 7:53 AM 28/5/08
This is just the first step in putting a marquee over the entire circumference of the world.
Rabid Penguin
ripfire4
Posted 7:38 AM 28/5/08
Mmmm. Imagine a building-sized Tetris on that thing.
ripfire4
92BuickLeSabre
Posted 7:31 AM 28/5/08
That's a lot of work for red script on a white background or alternately white script on a red background.
I guess with this technology they can alternate between the two more easily. Okay, so yeah, probably worth it then.
92BuickLeSabre
itscarmennnn
Posted 7:29 AM 28/5/08
I love Walgreens!
:)
itscarmennnn
Sweetnpantyhose
Posted 12:06 PM 29/5/08
We take one of our children each year for a three day trip when they first start high school and Time Square Rocks! It will be great to see another big bright colorful sign to add to the nightlife, not to mention if they happen to have Beyonce's Legs advertising a pantyhose ad on it, lol...
Sweetnpantyhose