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London (pte043/15.03.2005/15:00) - London taxi passengers will soon be offered an alternative to small talk with the taxi driver. As the Media Guardian http://www.mediaguardian.co.uk reports, from Easter, taxis in London will be fitted with state-of-the-art television screens allowing customers to watch seven channels of news, sport, music and comedy. Cabvision http://www.cabvision.com , the company behind the scheme, says that it is targeting a "captive audience". It has signed up a major airline as its first advertisers on the TV screens, which start up after the fare meter is activated.
Viewers will be able to switch between channels offering BBC comedy such as The Office, CNBC news, extreme sports and fashion and music television. However, they won't be able to avoid the adverts, which will screen in blocks at the same time on all channels. Despite the potential for commuter to be annoyed by the advertising, Cabvision said its survey of more than 700 taxi passengers showed that 63 per cent of those questioned said their journey would be enhanced by the product. "From the consumer's point of view, I think the fact they are being given some blue-chip quality content to surf and view that's going to break up an otherwise monotonous experience is a benefit," said Tom Paton, Cabvision's sales and marketing director.
Cabvision will install the monitor between the flip-down seats in the back of black cabs and pay cab drivers 750 pounds each year for the space. The company predicts its revenue in the first year, when the screens will be in 1,000 cabs, will exceed 1 million pounds. The company plans to have the screens operating in 4,000 cabs after three years. Black cabs in Scotland have already been fitted with flat-screen television sets courtesy of Cabtivate http://www.cabtivate.com .
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