The Daily Mail launches free SMS service

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The Daily Mail is offering readers free text messages through a new mobile phone service launched today (February 18). MailTXT aims to drive traffic to the paper’s mobile-based web portal.

The service will allow people to send and receive free texts through the internet after registering on the MailTXT website. MailTXT will give users a credit for 0.5p for every message sent to cover any charges from their mobile operator for using the internet.

If the scheme proves successful, there are plans to introduce a range of premium, paid for services such as news, information alerts and shopping.

A campaign to support the text service has been launched in today’s paper. A spokesman for The Daily Mail would not be drawn on its target for consumer take up.

Guy Zitter, managing director of Associated Newspapers’ Daily Mail, says: “The latest findings from our research panel of MidBritons show that as a group, they are very smart with their money and are confident users of the latest technology and services. We believe that MailTXT combines the best of both.

“MailTXT provides us with the platform to find out more about them, so we can continue to deliver the kind of quality content and products that appeal to them.”

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