Jeep is spattering a little mud on mobile phones.
The DaimlerChrysler division this week launched a branded TV channel that plays on mobile phones. Jeep runs episodes of its Web-based serial “We Are the Mudds,” featuring a mud-spattered family and their adventures in the Jeep Commander. The serial, which continues to run online, has four episodes, with more expected.
“MobiTV is about getting the right content to the right consumer, right now,” said Chrysler and Jeep VP Jeff Bell in a statement. “As we continue to innovate as a marketer, MobiTV provides a new platform that is all about choice.”
Jeep also is running TV ads on one of MobiTV’s 24 existing channels. Jeep is the first marketer to tap the ad service of MobiTV, which delivers live TV to 500,000 subscribers. (That subscriber base, which is spread across the U.S., U.K., Canada and Latin America, would make MobiTV the 13th largest cable TV operator in the U.S.)
MobiTV’s service is modeled after cable TV’s spot advertising. Cable operators substitute local ads for national ads that are tagged as replaceable; MobiTV offers its equivalent to these cable TV “local avails” to advertisers for branded entertainment or ads.
“Most people have their mobile phones with them all the time. The flexibility of our platform enables our advertisers to create compelling and entertaining ways to reach their customers, while keeping a great consumer experience at the forefront,” said MobiTV Chief Marketing Officer Dave Whetstone in a statement.
Meanwhile, Jeep continues to feature the Mudds online with a geo-caching game and sweepstakes. Players register, then watch the videos for clues to find geo caches on the site’s map; they earn entries for watching the video, finding caches, and referring friends to the site. Top prize is a 2006 Jeep Commander; smaller prizes include vacations and Jeep gear.
Emeryville, CA-based MobiTV is gearing up to pursue deals with more marketers. The company hired ad veteran Jack Hallahan as VP-advertising and brand partnerships, a new post, to build MobiTV’s ad business. Hallahan had been managing director at Wirestone, overseeing work for Apple Computer, TiVo and William-Sonoma, and earlier was VP at AKQA Advertising, where he managed multi-channel marketing for clients CNN/SI, Mattel, Macy’s, Nike and Visa USA. Hallahan cut his teeth at Chiat/Day and Young & Rubicam.
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