Reliance Communications is one of the biggest telcos in India. Part of the huge Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, it has both CDMA and GSM mobile networks in India. Today, it announce that UK-based mobile marketing 3rd Space will be creating a free, ad-funded mobile video service for Reliance customers.
Free mobile video is actually just the first step in a larger content agreement. Basically, Reliance wants to offer free video content to it’s subscribers. Not only will 3rd Space will be providing the video content and ad-funding for that, but also a broader spectrum of content. According to the release, 3rd Space will provide “premium” content like Who Wants to be a Millionaire, music, films and sport content.
Reliance says this content will be available on every handset on its network.
From the release:
Mr. Krishna Durbha, Head- Value Added Services at Reliance Communications: “Our tie-up with 3rd Space will be mutually beneficial. It will not only increase the viewership but also the revenue for both companies. Besides, the application offers outstanding video quality hitherto not experienced by mobile users and will be accessible on every handset in our ecosystem. Our initiative will act as a launch pad for ad-funded videos in India with more exciting things to follow.”
Warwick Hill, CEO of 3rd Space: “ India is a very dynamic mobile marketplace with many companies creating innovation. 3rd Space, being one of the world’s leading mobile marketing companies, is well positioned to support Reliance’s innovative approach to mobile TV. We are extremely proud to have been selected by Reliance to assist them grow their value added services business. We look forward to working with such a respected operator.”
What we think?
Nice one, 3rd Space! This is a great deal, but it remains to be seen whether mobile TV is a really valid proposition. It has failed to take off in the West, but that’s no guarantee it won’t be a success in India. After all, mobile usage patters are vastly different between the two markets.
