Dive Brief:
- Ziosk and Time Inc. signed a deal that integrates the publisher's content onto tablets at some 3,000 restaurant chains around the country. Patrons eating out at places like Chili’s will now be able to read People, EW and other Time brands while waiting for their food, according to a joint release.
- The deal will also see the two companies collaborate on advertising sales and cross-platform promotion.
- Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews joins Chili’s as the first two chains to test out the initiative, and more partners are expected to be announced in the coming weeks. The restaurants see cumulative foot traffic of about 50 million a month.
Dive Insight:
As print and digital publishing continually struggle to monetize content, media outlets are turning more and more to non-traditional means of reaching readers, and Time's new deal with Ziosk, which places tablets for ordering and paying in restaurants, is a smart way to connect to a massive audience with a lot of downtime and limited options for entertainment.
Patrons get free content in a number of categories such as entertainment, pop culture and sports news and analysis on the 170,000 Ziosk tablets available, and Time gets exposure for a number of its flagship media brands.
The deal not only puts Time content in front of millions of potential new readers, but it could also benefit advertisers partnered with the publisher, as ad pushed to the tablets presumably can't be blocked.
Ziosk has seen its business grow quickly over the past couple of years as both restaurants and diners look for digital services to streamline the in-restaurant experience.
“We are delighted to be working with Ziosk to extend the reach of the best-in-class content from People, SI and EW to millions of consumers,” said Executive Director of Business Development at Time Inc. Joseph LaFalce in the release. “This deal underscores our plan to expand beyond our core properties to leverage the diverse ecosystem of third-party digital platforms, emerging media channels and device-driven networks to reach consumers everywhere and to derive maximum value and growth for our business.”
Whether or not patrons will want to read a magazine as opposed to engage with the other, potentially more family-friendly features Ziosk tablets provide like videogames remains unclear.