• by Erik Sass , Staff Writer @eriksass1, October 1, 2010

People magazine's Web site, People.com, is bringing some of its premium online video content to big-box retail chains through a partnership with Premier Retail Networks, which operates an in-store digital video network in national retail outlets.

The videos, focusing on celebrities' lifestyles and doings, will air on PRN's Checkout TV Network, which reaches shoppers in cash register lines at 1,530 venues including Walmart, Pathmark, ShopRite, Acme Markets, Albertsons, Fresh Market, Jewel-Osco, Shaw's, and Star Markets. According to PRN, Checkout TV reaches about 95 million viewers per month.

The first videos in the series are drawn from People.com's "Happy Birthday" series, highlighting each week's celebrity birthdays.

People.com editor Mark Golin noted that, "showcasing People.com's videos on PRN's Checkout TV Network provides yet another way to extend our celebrity coverage and brand directly to consumers." Now, with the PRN partnership, "shoppers can pick up People magazine at the check-out counter, monitor the latest breaking news via People's Celebrity News Tracker on their mobile devices, and catch up on their favorite stars by watching People.com's videos in stores."

This isn't PRN's first alliance with a magazine publisher. In 2008 Condé Nast's Bon Appetit partnered with PRN to distribute special, custom-made content via Checkout TV. The short-form, custom content includes cooking tips, party ideas, and tie-ins with "The Next Food Network Star"; Bon Appetit also has a strategic partnership with the Food Network.  

Meanwhile some titles are targeting other digital out-of-home venues. In 2009 Outside magazine, published by Mariah Media Inc., partnered with the Resort Sports Network to create a new DO network reaching guest rooms and public areas at resort destinations around the country.