The new Wimob 2.0 launched recently, as a free, updated, Web-to-mobile platform from mobile technology company and proximity marketing leaders, Futurlink. It’s a web-base platform that allows users browsing the web to instantly send media files back to their mobile device via a variety of wireless connection methods such as Bluetooth, infrared.
Futurlink has identified the fact that most mobile phone users have probably come across multimedia files while surfing the Web on their computer that they’d love to take with them on their phone, but downloading and transferring those files to a mobile phone can be time consuming, and not all media types convert well for all devices.
“Wimob allows Web publishers to make their content portable and more accessible to mobile users,” says Futurlink CEO David Masó. “It’s about more than mobile downloads – Wimob acts as a mobile bookmarking tool, allowing users to take the best of the Web with them from their computer to their phone, whether that be train or flight schedules for travelers or mp3 podcasts or songs offered by the hosts and artists. Not only is Wimob easy to use, with multimedia files transferred to a mobile phone with just one click, but users never have to worry about whether their portable files are going to display or work properly with their phone. Wimob automatically adapts downloaded content to over 1000 compatible mobile phone formats without requiring users to install anything directly on their mobile devices.”
While it makes it easy for media owners to distribute their wares, the real benefits shine when used as a mobile marketing platform. For example, 2D coupons can be created by a marketing company to promote a live event. Those coupons can be placed on the company´s website for users to download. Visitors can then visit the company’s site from their computer and take advantage of a one-click download that adds the coupon to their mobile phone automatically, and the phone (with coupon saved) can be presented at the venue for a discount on admission. Wimob can even be used for mobile ticketing, and other marketing campaigns where media needs to be transferred to a device without using traditional means such as SMS.
The platform would probably boost distribution for a specific mobile campaign by simply driving traffic from the web to the campaign, and making it easier for users to participate. Without the need for texting to a shortcode or other various steps, users would be more likely to be involved.
The platform supports various content types including vouchers, product catalogs, brochures, branded content, mobile reminders, news, and tickets- making Wimob a viral mobile marketing powerhouse for Web publishers and advertisers if used correctly. In addition, the platform also supports…
– Video
– Audio mp3 files
– Photos and other images (such as wallpapers)
– Animations
– Maps
– Schedules and agendas (like flight schedules)
– vCards (contact details)
– Branded games
– 2D codes (“coupons” that can be sent directly to a mobile phone)
– Instant win competitions
I think this is a unique approach, and may gain merit overtime, but overall I see it as just another distribution method of the same old content. For traffic-heavy websites that want to experiment with mobile content, I think it provides a decent channel, but more reliable methods are still much more prevelant.
