-By Katy Bachman

Titan and MySpace launched Monday (Oct. 12) a joint promotion that ties together digital out-of-home with social media. The two companies are betting that the three-week experiment will attract advertisers to use the converged media in advertising campaigns.

The promotion called Step Up to the Mic invites users to upload on MySpace or a Titan Web site a brief message and picture, which will then be broadcast across more than 300 digital screens in New York; Chicago; Philadelphia; Dublin, Ireland; London, Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds and Birmingham, England; and Edinburgh and Glasgow, Scotland. About one-third of Titan’s digital network is in the U.S. on buses and transit platforms to reach about 15 million monthly.

While no money is changing hands for the project, the two companies hope the concept can be monetized in the near future. Advertisers could sponsor similar dialogues or create their own around specific events, such as Valentine’s Day.

“Once we figure out how many consumers took part, we can use it as a platform to sell to advertisers,” said Dave Etherington, marketing director for Titan.

The Titan and MySpace project is just the latest example of how digital out-of-home is combining with other new media to target consumers no matter where they are.

“The ability to create and connect communities through Titan’s digital signs located around the world and the ability for advertisers to interact and connect with their target audiences on a real-time basis now exists,” said Bill Apfelbaum, chairman of Titan.