Blyk expands to Netherlands, raises more financing (UK)
Vodafone Netherlands has signed an agreement to provide network capacity to MVNO Blyk. The deal marks Blyk’s first expansion outside the UK, where it launched last September. The company, which offers free mobile services in exchange for viewing advertisements, expects to launch in the Netherlands in the second half of this year. According to Blyk, the Netherlands represents an attractive market for its advertisers, ranking among the three countries with the highest advertising spend per capita in Europe. Started by former Nokia president Pekka Ala-Pietila, Blyk targets 16- to 24-year-olds, collecting demographic information and statistics on their mobile use in order to target ads to their handsets. Blyk offers in the UK a SIM-only package with no contract obligation including 43 minutes and 217 texts per month in exchange for receiving up to six MMS ads each day. In the UK, Blyk uses the Orange network. The company has also announced a funding round with new investors Goldman Sachs and Industrial and Financial Investments Company. No details on the amount of the investment were released.
