Canadian OOH company UB Media has acquired Bell Media’s Astral lifestyle advertising network following last week’s purchase of Pattison Outdoor’s residential network. That acquisition added 1,500 screens in over 500 buildings to UB’s national digital platform, UB TV, bringing it to a total of 4,500 screens.

The acquisition of the Astral lifestyle segment adds thousands of digital screens across restobar and campus venues nationwide. The company is investing in upgrades so that by Q1 2026 all of the newly acquired screens will be UB TV-enabled with features like dynamic layouts, integrated audio and real-time adaptability, UB said.

The deal does not involve Astral’s other OOH segments which include transit, airport, static and digital billboards and street furniture.

Launched in 2024, UB TV integrates both video and audio capabilities across UB’s inventory of place-based digital ads within its four national networks: restobar; cinema; residential; and campus and student housing. UB TV also offers personalized ad placement within curated social feeds that blend entertainment, news and other types of content on partner platforms like TikTok.

Reddit launches new ad unit

Reddit has launched a new ad unit that the company says is designed to help marketers boost brand exposure and connect with the platform’s community.

Interactive Ads is built on Reddit’s developer platform and offers a range of options, including custom campaigns, creative activations and repeatable templates such as countdowns, quizzes and trivia. The social network says it enables brands to create immersive experiences that go beyond traditional static image or video ads, allowing for deeper engagement and active participation with their brand story directly in-feed.

Early testers of the Interactive Ads feature include Paramount Pictures, who promoted the film The Running Man with a gamified experience featuring actor Glen Powell and exclusive content for Reddit users. Other brands testing the feature are Electronic Arts (EA), the Ad Council and Red Bull.

The feature is currently in alpha testing with select advertisers.