Search results matching tag 'mobile'

A is for Advergame; B is for Banner...

2175094 — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:30:00 GMT

Children today are growing up in a digital society. They will never know what it was like living in a world without the internet or mobile devices. They are digital savvy and their distinction between offline and online worlds increasingly blurs by the day. But being media savvy is not the same as being media literate.

Leading child psychologist Professor Tanya Byron, in her report to the UK Government “Safer Children in a Digital World”, concluded: “We must empower our children to take ownership of their safe and responsible digital behaviour.” Her report talked of the importance of information and education for children and parents. Industry is well placed to deliver this and today sees the launch of a national programme – Digital Adwise - to raise children’s awareness of digital advertising. The not-for-profit programme, aimed at 6-11 year olds, comprises a free set of lessons allowing kids to critically evaluate digital advertising in a fun way - for example there are some interactive activities such as “tag the ad” and "ad maker" – and there’s helpful support information for teachers, such as examples from the IAB’s Creative Showcase. The initiative builds upon the successful MediaSmart programme about television, radio and print advertising, now being used by 38% of UK primary schools. The new materials will also be available to all primary schools.

At an event in London yesterday evening to mark the launch of the programme, Creative Industries Minister, Sion Simon, spoke of the importance of “topical and cutting edge media literacy that teachers want and children can relate to”. He concluded that the whole advertising industry should get behind the initiative, promote it and ensure its success. The IAB agrees and we should all help to spread the message.

Follow the IAB on Twitter.

Heroes of The Mobile Screen Conference- Dec 7th

2085942 — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:10:00 GMT

I'll be speaking at Heroes of the Mobile Screen on Dec 7th at the BFI SouthBank which is taking an in-depth look at what's really going on in the world of mobile.

Its going to be a fantastic event with speakers and panelists from across the globe including Doug Richard, serial entrepreneur, from the TV series Dragon's Den. Uniquely the event also has secondary school pupils, college students and other members of the same generation, to tell the industry what they want from their mobile, what they expect from their network operators and what’s most important to them in terms of their mobile life.

The event is run by the same team (which includes the inspiring and charming Helen Keegan) that brings you Mobile Monday London, Swedish Beers, Future of Mobile, Over The Air, Mobile 2.0 and Tech Media Invest.

Tickets are available online now for £99 (ex VAT and booking fee).

You can register your interest in Heroes of the Mobile Screen by:
Checking out the website: http://mobileheroes.net/
Becoming a fan on Facebook
Following on Twitter: @hotms

I would love to see you there.

Social networks + smart phones = perfect harmony

2228399 — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:02:00 GMT

Did you start using social networks more after buying an iPhone or one of its smart phone rivals? Before I joined the iPhone bandwagon I interacted with Facebook in fits and starts.

However, since being inducted into the iPhone cult, I've become a more active user. It's especially good for uploading photos on the move that you want to share and if you ever find yourself in an office where Facebook is banned (a surprisingly high number of workplaces do) it's great for getting around this inconvenience.

A US-centric report by Openwave has backed up this anecdotal evidence with some stats, in which it found that four of the top 10 mobile domains by page impressions are social networks including Facebook.

Perhaps more surprising though is the absence of Google although this can be explained by most people accessing Google via their tool bar rather than google.com. Given that Twitter's short, quick updates are perfect for mobile users, this trend is only set to grow.

How are you catering for today’s ‘professional shoppers’?

209478 — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:29:00 GMT

ShopSavvy is a comparison shopping tool. You can find items by either typing them on your phone keyboard or using the camera to scan the bar code. Once you've found a product, ShopSavvy tells you the cheapest local or online price. For local products, you can get map directions, visit their website, or call the store. For online products, you can visit their website or share the product using Facebook or Twitter. You can also set ShopSavvy to automatically share your scans with Twitter, but this gets very spammy very fast and is a feature probably best leaving off.

In addition to finding the best price on items, you can compare user reviews, add it to your wish list, or set a price alert to let you know when it drops below a certain price. This is particularly handy for things like games and movies that you don't need to own in a hurry. ShopSavvy also keeps a history of items you've scanned, so if you want to remember the name of that camera you looked at the other day, you can just refer to your product history.

Ref. http://google.about.com/od/socialtoolsfromgoogle/gr/Shopsavvy_rev.htm

Mary Meeker Talks Up Mobile

2619528 — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:31:00 GMT

If you're not from around these parts, Morgan Stanley's Mary Meeker aka "Queen of the net" is a highly influential securities analyst, who regularly holds forth about the state of the economy and the digital industry. This time, her presentation was as interesting as ever and focused on the mobile web. If you're still a mobile sceptic, make this your must-read publication of your week. It all makes fascinating reading, but the mobile section starts on page 28.
Mary Meeker's Internet Presentation 2009Even if you missed the digital boom, or joined in too late, you must get into mobile now as it's already changing media and advertising and we're only at the beginning.

In the words of Mary herself:

"Mobile related share shifts will create/destroy material shareholder wealth."

So make sure you end up on the right side of the create/destroy equation in the Post PC Era that I've been talking about for some time.

For Gimmick Sake

2546157 — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 09:48:00 GMT

Playing night after night at the Hammersmith Apollo doesn’t seem so appealing to the exuberant performer in search of the next thrill. Ever since the Beatles pioneered the ‘gimmick’ gig by performing on a Saville Row rooftop, bands have been rocking out in all manner of places from high on snowy peaks (The Alarm) to leagues below the sea (Katie Melua). Brands have also got in on the act.

They’ve tried it all, from unusual locations, to mad stunts, but how can they be sure they are really adding value? Sony Ericsson, for instance, invited 200 people to sit on a plane at 35,000ft with a jigging Jamiroquai at their feet back in 2007. Unquestionably a unique camapign, but some may have struggled to find the immediate relevance to the Walkman handsets. Until it was duly pointed out it was to reinforce the message that you can listen to music without limitation. It’s no coincidence then, that most of the major brands active in music are all vying to find a more unusual place to host a gig, and all conveying the message that live music can be taken literally anywhere.

However, is this message getting lost amidst the gimmick itself? If you really have to choose an ‘original’ location, then do as Carling did when they invited fans to see their favourite bands play at festivals around the UK in the back of Carling’s refrigerated trucks. The gigs were an ancillary but popular part of the ‘Strike it Cold’ campaign and the Carling Cold Beer Amnesty, which all reinforced the unifying product message that ‘quality’ is best served cold.

Similarly T-Mobile ‘s ‘impromptu’ Pink performance for the ‘sing-along’ in Trafalgar Square was a well timed performance, following the hype from the flash mob dance in Liverpool St Station, that fitted rather snuggly into the ‘Life’s for Sharing’ campaign. Alternatively, if gigging in a manhole isn’t your thing, take things digital. YouTube hosted the world’s first collaborative online symphony concert, which invited musicians from all round the world to enter with the chance to play at Carnegie Hall in New York. The entire campaign was hosted, submitted and performed on YouTube allowing it to showcase its viral abilities and its wealth of credible content that goes well beyond wedding dances and two legged dogs.

A well planned stunt can unify a campaign and showcase your brand’s product and messaging very effectively. If finding a new location is what your brand needs it should complement a larger campaign and not be standalone. The key to capitialising on the inventiveness of a particular promotion is in maintaining a clear lead back to what makes the product itself unique. Full articles and comments are included in the new FRUKT Music Intelligence Report. To find out more visit www.fruktmusic.com. You can also follow us at twitter.com/FMInews

Mobile music: Brand-as-you-go

1794479 — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 12:46:00 GMT

Orange UK has launched a new free music streaming service aimed squarely at 16-24 year-olds today in a bid to capture a youth market hungry for free music. The new service - entitled 'Monkey' - is a JV between Universal Music Group, Orange UK, and Channel 4 and is the first free music package positioned entirely towards pay-as-you-go customers. The new deal will serve up thousands of songs from Universal artists, plus free competitions, news, gossip, exclusive access to artist content as well as providing the ability to share playlists via social networks. All of this will be free if users simply top up their phones with £10 credit.

"The free music element of the package fulfils an untapped market that is looking for a low-cost, easy access music service," states Orange. "Unlike some music services, which are either restricted to high-end more expensive handsets or have download costs, Monkey is for everyone," echoes Tom Alexander, CEO of Orange. Mark Mulligan of Forrester Research however takes slight issue with this highlighting how the 600 minutes a month restriction on Orange's new pay-as-you-go music service positions it as slightly less than free in reality. He argues that customers regularly paying £30 a month in phone credit are actually paying the equivalent of £2.14 per album.

So where do other brands fit in this new musical picture? Well, the service is also expected to tie-in with Oranges recently announced partnership with Blyk, the mobile marketing company, with Orange suggesting that Monkey will include "great offers from relevant brands". It’s plain to see the youth market wants free music, but do they want this to come with brands on board? The answer seems to be yes for a large percentage of the market. A recent KPMG Consumers and Convergence survey suggested that 40% of UK consumers are happy to watch mobile ads in exchange for free music. A figure backed up by an annual research survey from 3ple-Media, which stated that 41% of mobile subscribers are 'quite likely' to forward mobile ads in exchange for free access to music tracks. (Notably in these cash-strapped times this is up from 30% in last year’s survey)

What particularly interesting about the Blyk tie up is that Orange will serve advertising based on users preferences. How this works in practice in terms of what brands a Lady Gaga fan gets over a Razorlight fan is at present not entirely clear. However, the fact that music consumers want personalised advertising is. Around 48% of 18-45 year olds say they pay more attention if an online ad is relevant to them according to Lightspeed Research. One can assume this translates equally favourably across to mobile as well.

So can brands reach music consumers via mobile? Undoubtedly. Can they get the relevant cut through? Arguably yes if the ad content is personalised to user preferences. The main factor here is that advertisers need to see mobile as another touch point in a wider music related strategy. Around 51% of consumers say ads are highly effective if they “give me new information” according to a new Harris Poll. A non-related ad is going to get passed over, but one that drives the user into a deeper musical experience elsewhere is going to have the highest engagement factor. Mobile ads in this respect act as bookmarks to a deeper rooted music association in the minds of music consumers. Not so much music-on-the-go, more a music experience you can go to.

Zellphones for Zombies?

902609 — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 07:57:00 GMT

It has been a long time coming, but finally it appears that the supernatural are embracing digital technologies too. According to a news report on CNN, a Saudi family are suing a Genie for harassment. The interesting bit is that the genie appears to have embraced our love of mobile phones, and is accused of stealing their mobiles and also of leaving threatening voicemails.

So, does this open up a whole new market for the mobile companies? Zellphones for Zombies anyone?

How can you help bridge the generation gap?

209478 — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 11:51:00 GMT

Every generation has their own ‘language’, and today’s is text-speak. Now, text stress need no longer worry parents who haven’t a clue what the kids are saying – with LG’s DTXTR, which translates ‘text’ into English. OMG!

The application can translate over 2,000 commonly used words from/to text, much like language site BabelFish.com. LG is positioning the DTXTR tool as an ‘educational site and credible resource’ and warns, “Please be aware of the adult language and recognise that the glossary may have offensive nature.”

Ref. http://www.iconoculture.com/Approach/WhatWeIdentify/Observations/GenXers/index.aspx?DocName=oa_DTXTR_110588

A BBC licence fee for a digital age?

2175094 — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 17:10:00 GMT

The Government – pioneered by the departing Communications Minister, Lord Carter – today unveiled its final Digital Britain report.

There is welcome acknowledgement of the contribution digital advertising – in particular targeted advertising - will make in helping to monetise online content. The Government also attaches significant importance to self-regulation and education in promoting transparency and protecting internet users’ online privacy, supporting the IAB’s Good Practice Principles for behavioural advertising, as well as www.youronlinechoices.co.uk, the new portal to help educate users. There is also encouraging news in the appointment of Martha Lane-Fox, one of the pioneers of digital commerce, as the Government’s digital inclusion champion.

But all eyes are on two specific proposals contained in the 238 page report which will alter the digital landscape in the years to come:

1. A 50 pence per month levy on all fixed copper and cable lines (but not mobile infrastructure) from 2010 to fund the rollout of next generation broadband. According to Lord Carter that’s £6 per year per household, although low income households would be exempt. The fund would raise between £150-175m a year, allowing next generation rollout to be complete by 2017, a timescale specifically criticised by the Conservative Culture Spokesperson, Jeremy Hunt.

2. Ring-fencing the BBC’s underspend for the so-called Digital Switchover Help Scheme (ie money the BBC receives to help vulnerable people switch to digital TV services - over and above its existing licence fee settlement) to help finance the delivery of regional news, other than that provided by the BBC. This ‘Contained Contestable Element of the Licence Fee’ idea is not the so-called ‘top-slicing (to you and me that’s ‘sharing out’) of the BBC’s licence fee, as has been widely reported in the media.

Significantly, this second proposal fires the starting gun of the licence fee review (due in 2013) and the beginning of a wider discussion about how the BBC’s licence fee should apply (and in what form) in a digital age (eg we don’t pay the licence fee to access the BBC’s website or the iPlayer). The report moots maintaining a ‘Contained Contestable Element’ of the licence fee after 2013 and, in his briefing to industry this afternoon, Carter did not rule out this money being used for (non-BBC) children’s content and programming.

If there is to be a lasting legacy of this report then this is it. The Government has effectively sounded the death knell on the BBC’s licence fee as we know it today and kicked-off the debate about how we fund public service content in a digital age.

Follow the IAB on Twitter.