SEATTLE - How would you like the latest news, sports, traffic and weather along with that tank of gas? Beginning next year, PumpTop TV will be installed on top of gas pumps at 75 gas stations in the Seattle-Tacoma area.

It's similar to TV, but not quite. Using a secure Internet connection, the 19-inch LCD screens deliver national news and entertainment, as well as localized, up-to-the-minute weather and traffic.

PumpTop TV

PumpTop TV features customized news programming and real-time traffic.

"It's basically a TV experience delivered through the Internet," said Roy W. Reeves, Vice President of Sales & Marketing.

PumpTop says people spend an average of 6 minutes at the gas pump each time they visit a gas station. They aim to connect with the consumer during that time.

"It's a good form of entertainment. What else are you going to do?" said Reeves.

On each screen, a five-minute video program loop is regularly updated with the latest information. Advertising is interspersed in the news-related content in a video or static format.

"So you could see a national or regional campaign, or very local, with say, 'Joe's pizza' restaurant at just one station," said Reeves.

Weather and traffic are real-time and up-to-date.

"Weather is based on zip code," he said. "So weather you see in one zip code is going to be different than what you would see perhaps 10 miles away in a different zip code."

While the Puget Sound area will be getting PumpTop, the Portland area is out of luck. They are a "full service market," where customers don't pump their own gas.

PumpTop is currently at stations in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and Sacramento. Next month, it will be up and running in Phoenix, and then it will spread to Dallas and Houston before moving east to Chicago, New York, Boston and Philadelphia. At the end of the year, stations in Florida will be added.

"We're looking at close to 80,000 screens, making it one of the largest out-of-home digital media networks," said Reeves.

The back-to-back screens, which are visible on both sides of the pump, will replace the cardboard signs that are currently in use.

"Really this is just the next evolution in the digital age," said Reeves. "Change the message and entertain at the pump."