A Phoenix-founded outdoor advertising company has rebranded itself and planted a flag in one of the most coveted stretches of real estate in American advertising: the entrance to Times Square. Harkey Media is now FRAME OOH, and the company has acquired 9 Times Square, relaunching its billboard there with a massive new full-motion screen measuring 27 feet by 66 feet.
The screen officially went live at the beginning of October, according to In Business magazine, which reported that the acquisition anchors a broader expansion of FRAME OOH's presence in the New York market. The company has also opened a New York City office, a move described as strengthening its in-market capabilities as it scales up operations in the city, per the same report. As ABC15 Arizona noted, the new office is meant to increase in-market support for the company's growing New York footprint.
A New Name Built on Years of Dealmaking
FRAME OOH's rebrand comes after what CEO Scott Harkey described as years of groundwork. “We've spent the last several years building the assets, markets and team. FRAME is the brand for where we're going next,” Harkey said, according to the inbusinessphx.com report. Harkey has built and acquired digital billboards across Phoenix and in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Boston, Las Vegas, Nashville, Salt Lake City and Kansas City, per ABC15 Arizona.
Matt Molina, president of FRAME OOH, framed the moves as part of a longer-term strategy. “We continue acquiring, developing and investing in premium OOH assets nationwide,” Molina said, the magazine's report notes. The company is not stopping at New York — it has also entered the Chicago market, acquiring four 20-foot by 60-foot digital bulletins along the Tri-State I-294 freeway and two static wallscapes, bringing its total U.S. footprint to eleven markets, including New York, Chicago and its home base of Phoenix.
Times Square's Enduring Pull for Advertisers
The FRAME OOH deal lands amid a boom for the broader out-of-home advertising industry. U.S. out-of-home advertising revenue hit a record $9.46 billion in 2025, up 3.6% year over year, according to the Out of Home Advertising Association of America, marking 19 consecutive quarters of growth for the industry. Digital out-of-home specifically accounted for 36.3% of total OOH revenue and grew 10.5% year over year, the trade group reports, while transit advertising was the fastest-growing segment for the second straight year, rising 9.2% annually. Seventy percent of the top 100 OOH advertisers increased their spending compared with 2024, and technology and digitally native brands made up 28% of that top-100 list.
FRAME OOH is not the only company betting big on Times Square real estate. Providence Equity Partners separately acquired a multi-decade lease for nine marquee billboards at Two Times Square and 1600 Broadway from Universal Branding Group, entering a long-term operating agreement with OUTFRONT Media to run the displays, according to OOH Today. Those billboards were described in the same report as drawing more than 100 million annual visitors and over one million daily ad impressions, underscoring why the district remains such a prized target for outdoor advertising investment.
The area around the FRAME OOH screen has also been reshaping itself in other ways. One Times Square, the largely vacant ball-drop tower covered in billboards, has filled its floors with candy stores, immersive screen experiences and wedding chapels, according to Curbed.
Regulatory Backdrop for Times Square Signage
Any illuminated sign, billboard or marquee in New York City requires an additional permit that must be renewed annually, according to NYC311. Separately, the city's zoning code includes special rules for the Times Square area: the Department of Buildings may not issue a permit for covered development or enlargement on a zoning lot with street frontage on Seventh Avenue or Broadway between 43rd and 50th streets unless drawings showing compliance with sign requirements are submitted first, per the NYC Zoning Resolution. It is not established whether these specific provisions apply to the 9 Times Square display without a review of that property's own permits and approvals.
