• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, June 28, 2010

Larry Blasius, a one-time Madison Avenue mandarin now running a consulting firm, has become an advisor to a company launching a new in-store network. Blasius left Interpublic's Magna Global after seven years in 2008.

The venture, 3GTv Networks, debuts at a time when Procter & Gamble are increasingly looking to reach consumers closer to the point of purchase; Interpublic recently unveiled a related agency.

New Jersey-based Automated Media Services (AMS) owns 3GTv Networks, where screens will be in nine Washington-area supermarkets next month. The company says it has been backed by $10 million.

Blasius, who will receive some equity in the company, but no cash compensation, will play a role in generating interest among agencies in the network. John Lunghi, formerly of Turner Broadcasting, leads sales internally.

At Magna, Blasius was an executive vice president in the negotiations area. Since leaving, he has advised clients such as ABC, A&E Networks' History en Espanol and theknot.com.

"His insight into the needs of media agencies and the clients they serve will be invaluable to the company," AMS CEO, Bob Wolinsky, stated.

Before Magna, Blasius spent eight years as a senior vice president at TN Media. His role at 3GTv reunites him with former Omnicom executive Steve Grubbs, whom he worked with at BBDO in the 1980s. Grubbs is also a company advisor and holds an equity stake.

Word that 3GTv -- where screens will appear in aisles and ads will run right next to products on display -- would roll out in July was first reported in The New York Times. There is, however, some murkiness about what will differentiate 3GTv ("3rd Generation Television") from the mass of in-store video advertising operated by the likes of Premier Retail Networks.

The company says its model vis-à-vis advertisers resembles traditional television, in that it offers media buyers audience guarantees. It has a "cart-tracking" system that can gauge traffic flow in front of a screen, although a company representative declined further comment.

It also uses CPMs as negotiating currency in order to ease the buying process for TV buyers. And it says it offers some unique verification systems, such as one that ensures both that a spot ran and that it did so with the proper "color correctness and brightness. Blasius said in a statement that 3GTv "reinforces the brand awareness" generated by other forms of advertising.