Huge Apple ads ruffle feathers in Boston
Last week I was in Boston and drove past the ad pictured at right, as I have done many times. Even though it first went up in 2007, I still think, "Man, that is a big ad."
Boston's Outdoor Advertising Board agrees.
Two years ago, they declared the 13,750 square-foot monstrosity illegal because of its size. Yet it's still in place. Last June, the groups behind the advertising agreed to pay the state $110,000 as a settlement, according to The Boston Globe.
Now, according to the Globe, there's a political backlash. It seems that the settlement was reached with some "help" given to a business person from a campaign aide from Boston Mayor Thomas Menino's office. The same acquaintance reportedly has made annual donations to the Mayor's office since 2005.
The owners argue that the ad promotes sales inside the self-storage business just behind the huge wall, where customers can buy iTunes gift cards.
The ad space first went into use 6 months before Apple opened the flagship retail store on Boylston Street.
[Via iPodNN]
Photo: Yoon S. Byun, The Boston Globe
