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Virgin Mobile Trades Minutes for Eyeballs

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May 30, 2006 

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Sarah Novotny  |

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Virgin Mobile Trades Minutes for Eyeballs

Pay-as-you-go cell phone service Virgin Mobile will be trading free talk time for video ad views, surveys, and text message replies. The more time that a Virgin Mobile customer spends interacting with ads, the more free minutes will be credited to them.

The campaign that Virgin Mobile calls SugarMama will debut in June and feature ads related to Microsoft’s Xbox, Diet Mountain Dew, and the anti-smoking “Truth” campaign. Virgin Mobile, owned by the Virgin Group and Sprint Nextel, hopes the lure of free minutes will translate into another source of revenue, bring in more customers, and acclimate pay-as-you-go customers to the idea of mobile advertising.

“As we developed the service, we made a pledge to our customers that it would be entirely opt-in; it would rewards-based with minutes; it would be entertaining and relevant; and then finally that we provide them with either exclusive access to content or… access to offers that are only for Virgin Mobile customers,” Virgin Mobile Marketing Director Saj Cherian told ADOTAS.

According to the much TV advertising, going over the minutes on your cell phone plan is worse than getting your eyes poked out by red-hot pokers. Pay-as-you-go services like Virgin Mobile are aimed at those who work under a tight budget, like those on a fixed income, those who keep a close eye on their finances, or teens, who have to pay for their time out of their own pockets. The SugarMama program is entirely voluntary. Customers can view most of the 30-second video ads through the Virgin Mobile web site, and then fill out a survey, or respond to questions via text message.

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