BENGALURU: With the footfalls crossing the 3.5 lakh figure per day on an average across its stations, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL) has now decided to cash in big on an unexplored non-fare revenue stream — advertisement spaces inside 39 stations of Phase-I. A temporary licence of six months will be provided to companies selling products and services or agencies which market advertising spaces for an area of 5,000 sqft across its stations initially. The overall space available exceeds 2 lakh sqft, which will be tendered out in due course.
“We have floated a tender for a short duration only to test the market potential,” said BMRCL Chief Public Relations Officer U A Vasanth Rao. The tender document listed the objectives behind the move — to bring an advertising environment to Namma Metro stations which is comparable to the aesthetics and quality of leading mass transit terminals and international airports in the world, to maximise the revenue potential for Metro as well as advertisers and to provide value to the brands that associate with Namma Metro.
Listing out the financial criteria, the document says that the bidder should have a minimum gross annual turnover of Rs 25 crore at least in any of the last three financial years preceding the tender notification and a cumulative turnover of at least Rs 100 crore over three years.The technical capacity mandates a minimum experience of five years in the advertising business for public places and at transportation centres like Metro stations, railway stations, airports, bus terminals, shopping malls or other public places in the case of ad agencies.
BMRCL had already opened up its stations for retail outlets five years ago and it has proved to be an attractive revenue source.