i-movo to offer free texts in return for watching ads

Mobile marketing company i-movo is offering mobile phone users free SMS text messages if they watch ads on their handsets.

i-movo has linked with sister company i-text to set up the service, which allows mobile phone users with a GPRS Internet connection to select and view advertisements in return for credits, which can then be cashed in exchange for text messages.

Users download an application which allows them to access the ads on a website using their phones. Messages are composed and sent via a web browser accessed through mobiles.

David Tymm, managing director at i-movo, points out that recent research has found that mobile phones are the electronic devices consumers value the most, with some industry experts predicting that mobiles will eventually replace TV as the primary channel for advertising.

Tymm says: “It goes way beyond the traditional ‘pay per click’ models established by search engines to provide much greater measurability of all advertising success.”

i-movo and i-text plan to go live with the system this month, and are currently recruiting consumer volunteers to help with the beta testing program in return for free text messages.

i-movo is a private company jointly owned by technology company Conchango and David Tymm, and was set up in 2003 to develop technology and systems for mobile couponing. Current clients for its coupon systems include Nectar, All Bar One and Cuervo.