Ted Turner Cited for \'Place-Based\' Media Efforts

Ted Turner is known for his pioneering efforts in cable television, founding channels like CNN and TBS. He was honored on Tuesday for his leadership role involving other types of screens.

Mr. Turner was feted on Tuesday morning at the start of the fifth annual Digital Media Summit, taking place at the New York Hilton and sponsored by the Digital Place-based Advertising Association. He was honored with the first award presented by the association to someone its members deem an industry visionary.

The association's members are companies in the field of what is called place-based media â€" that is, firms that seek to reach consumers with advertising that appears in locations like stores, airports, health clubs, taxicabs and malls.

In the early 1990s, Mr. Turner's company, Turner Broadcasting System, was in the forefront of place-based media. It started networks, broadcasting programming and commercials, that included the Checkout Channel, in supermarkets; CN N Accent Health, in doctors' offices; CNN Airport Network; CNN College Television Network, now the MTVU unit of Viacom; and McDTV, inside McDonald's restaurants.

At the time, the idea of encouraging consumers to watch TV in locations where television was not usually watched was somewhat controversial, particularly because of the introduction of sponsored programs in classrooms by Whittle Communications under the Channel One banner.

Critics complained that the screens commercialized the environments in which they were installed. Years later, the screens are accepted, or at least tolerated, as critics have moved on to complaining about other forms of advertising they consider more obtrusive and intrusive.

Turner Broadcasting, which Mr. Turner sold to what is now Time Warner, is still in the place-based media business, operating digital networks under the Turner Private Networks banner.

Mr. Turner was unable to receive his award in person at the conference because “he's at the U.N.,” said Mike DiFranza, the chairman of the association, who is also the president of Capivate Network, a Gannett unit that operates TV screens in elevators.

Instead, those attending the conference watched a video that paid tribute to Mr. Turner, who is 73. In the video, Mr. Turner said he considered his role in starting place-based media among his “proudest accomplishments.”

“Just like the early days of cable, you're on the cusp of something big,” Mr. Turner said.

Mr. DiFranza concluded the tribute by quoting a motto of Mr. Turner's, which has also been attributed to the likes of Henry Ford: “Early to bed, early to rise, work like hell and advertise.”

The conference is to continue at the Hilton through Tuesday afternoon.