Brisbane billboards leave Sydney behind Digital billboard, of the sort facing ban by Brisbane City Council Photo: http://www.goa.com.au Ms MoldrichBrisbane has embraced digital advertising faster than Sydney, according to Australia's peak outdoor advertising body. The statement came a day after Brisbane City Council introduced bylaws banning constant-action images on billboards, except in areas largely used by pedestrians, such as King George Square or the Queen Street Mall. Instead roadside television-style billboards will be restricted to displaying still images that change every eight to 10 seconds. The move has been embraced by GOA, Queensland's largest digital advertiser, which has 14 digital billboards measuring 20 square metres and larger around Brisbane. Sydneysider Charmaine Moldrich, the chief executive of the Outdoor Media Association, said on Tuesday Brisbane advertisers surpassed their southern rivals when it came to using digital billboards. ""Brisbane is a bit ahead of Sydney, I think, in terms of its acceptance of new technology,"" she said. ""I think you guys underestimate how good your city is, in lots of ways."" Ms Moldrich said she had no doubt Brisbane's smaller, ""more nimble"" advertisers would adapt to the new advertising laws - the result of three years of negotiotions with the council. ""Brisbane has a much more vibrant small business economy than Sydney has in a way,"" she said. GOA managing director Chris Tyquin said his firm introduced digital billboards to Brisbane in 2009, putting the first in place on Abbotsford Road at Bowen Hills. Mr Tyquin said the billboard was a trial, and it could have been swiched off at any time if the council had safety concerns. ""But for us, it was a half million (dollar) investment and we took that risk because we had seen what was happening overseas,"" he said. Mr Tyquin said there were between 5000 and 10,000 digital billboards in the United States. ""You can then go to the extreme which is Times Square [in New York], and to a lesser extent Piccadilly Circus in London, where you see full motion,"" he said. Mr Tyquin said his company was happy with the new guidelines set by Brisbane City Council. Ms Moldrich said Queensland's advertisers were more sophisticated than they were 10 years ago, when a racy Windsor Smith shoe advertisement raised hackles. ""The Windsor Smith ad was 1999,"" she said. ""An ad like that would not have run in 2010, let alone now." Ms Moldrich said new advertising controls, including an education program and a content review policy had cut billboard advertising complaints from 36 per cent in 2010 to 4.6 per cent in 2012.