New 3G player rolls out ad-supported service
By Lawrence Casiraya
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 04:06:00 05/20/2008
MANILA, Philippines -- A new 3G industry player owned by Smart Communications has announced what it touts as the first ad-supported 3G mobile phone service targeted at niche markets.
Called “uMobile,” the service was announced by Connectivity Unlimited Resource Enterprise, Inc. (CURE). In a statement, the company said the service will begin this June.
uMobile is intended as a mobile marketing platform for advertisers heavily dependent on subscriber participation.
According to CURE, a portion of the revenues generated from these campaigns will be given back to the subscribers who then can purchase or make transactions for uMobile services or avail of a brand's product offer such as freebies, discounts and other rewards.
Subscribers will be initially given P100 worth of free credits for the first six months upon activation. Additional credits will be given based on their participation in mobile marketing campaigns. Additional prepaid load or credits will be made available in traditional retail channels and also online.
The service will be largely by invitation and only around 10,000 subscribers will be accepted every month, said Ardie Balderrama, CURE's chief marketing officer.
uMobile will specifically target users aged 15 to 35 years old, a primary target market for both telecom service providers and consumer brands.
"We are focusing on this market because we want to offer corporations a very targeted and profiled audience that they can talk to and interact through mobile marketing campaigns," said Balderrama.
uMobile will also be available to Smart subscribers through a "facility sharing" agreement between two telcos.
CURE was among four operators granted 3G licenses in 2005 by the NTC.
Last March, Smart announced it acquired for around P420 million the entire capital stock of PH Communications Holdings Corp., which owns CURE. Smart said it plans to invest P210 million more in the company.
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