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Mobile Marketing Association updates global mobile advertising guidelines

The Mobile Marketing Association has published the latest version of its Global Mobile Advertising Guidelines to address new ad units and the globalization of mobile application specifications.

The updated guidelines, produced by MMA member companies and participants in the MMA Mobile Advertising Committee worldwide, focus on new advertising units and specifications as innovation continues throughout the industry. The MMA?s Global Mobile Advertising Guidelines provide the global formats, guidelines and best practices necessary to implement mobile advertising initiatives in a variety of mobile media channels, including Web, messaging, downloadable applications and video.

?We?re excited to get these updated mobile advertising guidelines out there,? said Mike Wehrs, president/CEO of the MMA, New York. The number of comments and the level of support from the industry was phenomenal.

?There was obviously pent-up demand for these updates, and it?s been great to see the level of participation from all areas of the mobile ecosystem,? he said.

The Mobile Marketing Association is a global non-profit trade association established to lead the growth of mobile marketing and advertising and their related technologies.

The MMA is designed to clear obstacles to market development, establish mobile media guidelines and best practices for sustainable growth and evangelize the use of the mobile channel.

Released every six months or so, the guidelines process ensures that the recommendations are continually updated and reflective of global best practices and industry feedback. The MMA has published regional ad guidelines since 2005, globalising them in April 2008. 

?We?re trying to increase frequency of the updates because mobile device proliferation has accelerated so successfully, and with the great variety of devices, ad units have to be standardized or you wouldn?t know how to count impressions or enagement,? Mr. Wehrs said.

The MMA guidelines are designed to encourage the uptake of mobile advertising and marketing worldwide by creating a simplified framework for brands and agencies to deliver mobile advertising in a consistent way.

Key revisions include global requirements for mobile application ad units; new advertising units and definitions across channels; new length requirements for mobile video and TV ad units; and recommended future mobile Web banner ad requirements.

?We?re starting to see the improvements in browsers on phones so they?re more capable and you can do more interesting things on those browsers, not just statics banners without any dynamic content,? Mr. Wehrs said.

?As the level of interactivity improves and richer and richer content is possible, the value of mobile advertising needs to be more accurately measured by having a wider range of ad units measured,? he said.
 
A primary goal of the MMA?s Global Mobile Advertising Guidelines is to simplify the deployment of mobile advertising campaigns while increasing their effectiveness

Since the mobile marketing industry is constantly growing and evolving, it is important to address new trends and standardize new ad formats with an eye toward the future.

?The future really comes down to taking into account the number of devices and their improved capabilities, and evolve the ad guidelines accordingly,? Mr. Wehrs said. ?There will be completely different ways that a user is going to interact with mobile content going forward.

?We?re broadening the device types we support and increasing the frequency of the updates of device classes to make sure the advertising guidelines are timely for new devices,? he said.

The 700-plus companies that are members of the MMA represent more than forty countries and include all areas of the mobile media ecosystem.

The MMA Mobile Advertising Committee member companies include 4Info Inc., AdMob Inc.,
AT&T Mobility, Azuki Systems, Buzzd, Catapult Marketing, Fox Interactive Media, GetJar Inc., GoldSpot Media, Greystripe Inc.,Impact Mobile Inc., Jinny Software, Jumptap, Madhouse Inc. and Microsoft?s MSN and Windows Live.

Other members include Millennial Media Inc., MindShare,  Mobile Posse, Mobixell Networks (Europe) Ltd., Myxer Inc., Neustar Inc., News Over Wireless, Orange NSM, Out There Media GmbH, AOL?s Platform A, Quattro Wireless, Rhythm NewMedia, Ringleader Digital, Sensei Inc., SkyFire Labs Inc., Smaato Inc., Snac Inc. and Sybase 365.

Rounding out the list is Tapioca Mobile, Telecom Italia SpA, Telefónica S.A., TelePages Inc., Telescope Inc., The Weather Channel Interactive, Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri A.S., U.S. Cellular Corp, Unkasoft Advergaming, Velti, Verizon Wireless, Vibes Media and Vodafone Group Services Ltd.

The latest version of the MMA global Mobile Guidelines can be downloaded at http://mmaglobal.com/mobileadvertising.pdf.

The MMA has also published a Mobile Advertising Overview white paper and an Applications white paper for educational purposes. 

Mobile marketing gets California love
With CTIA I.T. & Entertainment in San Diego this month and the MMA?s Mobile Marketing Forum in Los Angeles  next month, there will be plenty of discussion about the state of the mobile marketing industry and how to continue to move it forward.

CTIA will take place at the San Diego Convention Center Oct. 6-9.

Hosted by the MMA, this year?s Mobile Marketing Forum is an event for the mobile community that includes the Annual MMA Global Awards Ceremony and Dinner, bringing together industry leaders from throughout the global mobile marketing ecosystem.

The MMF will be held Nov. 17 at the Sheraton Downtown Los Angeles.

?CTIA will have some focus on mobile marketing, but it doesn?t take into account agencies or brands,? Mr. Wehrs said. ?Mobile Marketing Forum is in November, and that?s when mobile marketing gets it due.

?CTIA has a broad focus on the wireless industry, and mobile marketing will get some level of coverage, but it will not be a focus of the show,? he said. ?Our show takes into account the depth and breadth of mobile marketing as a cross-industry discipline.?