It costs between $1.1 and $4 million a year to buy advertising space in Times Square. The first electrical advertisements appeared in 1908, with Perrier being the first brand to be illuminated. With each of the six screens worth more than £4 million a year, advertising analysts estimate the chance to dominate the site completely could be worth as much as £30 million. But analysts said the move to one big screen could take time, as existing clients such as Coca Cola — which has advertised there since 1955 — could have long-term leases. In 1923 electric billboards … Situated in the heart of London’s West End, the world famous Piccadilly Lights have been upgraded to a single 783.5m 2 screen with a resolution 1.4x greater than 4K – making it the largest advertising display in Europe.. Since then the lights have shone almost continuously, turned off only for the Second World War, for the funerals of Sir Winston Churchill and Princess Diana and more recently to mark Earth Hour for the WWF. Find out more about how we use your information in our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy. It’s been nearly 10 months since a shadow was cast over central London, when the Piccadilly Circus billboards were switched off. The first electrical advertisements appeared in 1908, with Perrier being the first brand to be illuminated. In the background are the neon advertising signs of Piccadilly Circus, 1956: Traffic circling the statue of Eros on the central roundabout at Piccadilly Circus, London, Piccadilly Circus by night during the Black Out in 1959, People gather for a night on the town at Piccadilly Circus, London in 1969, Traffic moves through Piccadilly Circus as the landmark advertising lights are turned off during the Capital 95.8 Light Out London Campaign on June 21, 2007 in London, Traffic moves through Piccadilly Circus as the landmark advertising lights are turned back on after the Capital 95.8 Light Out London Campaign on June 21, 2007 in London, Long exposure of pedestrians and traffic outside Piccadilly Circus Tube Station in 2014, Lorna Tilbian, media analyst at Numis Securities, said: “A mega-size hoarding is worth much more than six hoardings. he six advertising hoardings at the landmark Piccadilly Lights are to become one giant screen, which could be sold for £30 million a year. 5. But not just any billboard, the most famous billboard in the world. You can safely say this is the billboard equivalent of the Super Bowl — prime ad space in the busiest bit of the world’s leading global city.”, Land Securities said: “We are working with experts in new technologies and out-of-home marketing to completely reposition this iconic site, giving advertisers innovative ways to interact with the two million weekly passers-by.”. Find the cost of a journey between two stations with our single fare finder. The location of the LED billboard – some billboards are more expensive than others, for example, the digital billboard in Piccadilly Circus is more expensive than one at a local shopping centre. Piccadilly Circus was laid out in 1818 to connect Regent Street with the street called Piccadilly. Water company Perrier was the first electrical advert on the site, in 1908. Read our full mailing list consent terms here, 1899: Horse-drawn traffic and passers-by outside The London Pavilion at Piccadilly Circus. Piccadilly Circus tube station was opened on 10 March 1906, on the Bakerloo line, and on the Piccadilly line in December of that year. London’s Piccadilly Circus and its famous billboards are passed by an estimated two million people each week, which is why a large, 96-sheet billboard in this location can cost in excess of £727 per week (plus … The original light bulbs were replaced by neon … A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads.Billboards present large advertisements to passing pedestrians and drivers. The billboard lights at Piccadilly Circus have been switched back on following major renovations.