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The race capture the next frontier of advertising – mobile – has heated up with the behemoth of search-based advertisement to capture the next frontier of advertising – mobile – has heated up with the behemoth of search-based advertising unveiling its products for the fast-growing medium. Soon after it invited advertisers to place search ads on mobile phones through AdWords, Google has now opened up its AdSense programme to mobile content providers. India’s booming mobile phone market is among 13 countries (among them, the US, England, Germany, Russia, China) where the new ad format will be made available.

While AdWords is a programme where advertisers can bid for keywords and place their ads next to Google’s search results, AdSense lets publishers or content providers place these search ads on their sites and get a revenue share out of them.

Google has also added another element besides text, images and video to its online advertising formats – widgets. Widgets are ‘windows’ that can be placed on a website, displaying content which can be automatically updated. Google’s widgets are called Gadgets and Gadgets Ads are its foray into widget advertising. So, advertisers registered with Google can now place widgets on its network of websites.

How Google’s AdSense works for mobiles

Google’s not the first mobile ad network (there’s AdMob and Third Screen Media, among others), but certainly the one with the most traction. Google’s AdSense for mobile is an extension of its programme for online publishers or websites. Simply put, it will let companies place search ads on their mobile WAP (wireless access protocol) pages, or mobile sites, which can be accessed on Internet-enabled phones.

Speaking to agencyfaqs! in a telecon from the US, Prashant Fuloria, director, product management, at Google says AdSense for mobile will “provide a revenue share to content providers and encourage them to create more mobile content”. Considering the limited size of mobile screens, Google will display shorter content on its search ads on mobile, and will also keep the number of ads lower, adds Fuloria. The ads will also tune themselves according to different mobile browsers and will be compatible with all WAP-enabled mobile phones.

Elaborating on the potential for mobile advertising in India, Fuloria adds, “As the market develops, I am confident that we will have a number of high-quality publishers, many of whom have WAP-enabled sites.”

Mobile advertising has been hailed by many industry professionals as the next big thing in Indian media. Most mobile technology and VAS (value-added services) companies like Mobile2win, Hungama Mobile, Mobileworx and Cellebrum offer different forms of mobile advertising, including SMS ads, WAP banners, advergames and branded content. Mobile technology company OnMobile is also developing a mobile marketing division.

However, one must keep in mind that 15 per cent of India’s mobile subscribers (193 million in July 2007) are estimated to have GPRS-enabled mobile phones – of which only 5 per cent actually visit mobile WAP sites.

Still, Rajiv Hiranandani, co-founder and country head of Mobile2win, thinks this is the right time for an AdSense for mobile. “Mobile search advertising is expected to explode in the next two-three years. AdSense can be a very strong tool for mobile advertisers.” He adds that the platform would be most effective for mobile operators, who are also the largest publishers on mobile. This refers to the WAP portals of operators like Airtel Live!, Idea Fresh and Reliance World, which are visited more often than independent WAP sites.

Manoj Dawane, CEO of Mauj Telecom, thinks that AdSense will actually help these independent mobile sites grow. “Mobile ad networks are the way things will work in the future, especially for non-operator sites. Operators will have to change their ‘closed garden’ concept and let other players showcase their sites.” Mauj Telecom is also working on developing its own mobile ad network, as it already has an inventory of online publishers on its popular portals, Shaadi.com and Fropper.com

The walled or closed garden concept is also a point to ponder. Most telecom operators have tied up with search engines on their WAP sites. So, Airtel has Google Search on its mobile portal, Idea is working on a customised portal with Yahoo! OneSearch and Hutch has MSN Live Search. Whether the competing search engines will be comfortable hosting Google AdSense along with their search box remains to be seen. If it does pose a problem, this could limit Google’s reach in the market.

Though Google has not announced any mobile publishers on AdSense, most content providers are expected to participate in the programme in an industry where business models are hard to define. ActiveMedia Technology is one of the agencies which could offer AdSense to clients. Raj Singh, executive director of the agency, says, “We could work with Google as a partner on AdSense. It is one of the advertising options we would advise clients to use for their mobile marketing campaigns.”

Widget advertising is Google’s latest offering
Speaking about widget advertising, Fuloria says, “Gadgets are like mini-websites and can be a very interactive ad format. Advertisers can use Gadget Ads to extend their brand through their own content, user-generated content, viral campaigns or product demos.” Google has done trial runs for Gadget Ads with advertisers in the UK, the US and Germany. Some of these advertisers are Paramount Vantage’s campaign for its movie, ‘A Mighty Heart’, Nissan for its new car and Austrian Airlines for ticket booking. (For more on widget advertising, read this story.)

Fuloria adds that these gadgets can be created by the advertisers themselves and uploaded directly through the AdWords platform. They can bid for these ads through the same model and can also place them contextually, that is, depending on the content of the website, or based on the location or demographics of customers. Fuloria added that the cost of these ads would be decided through the bidding model, and no premium would be charged on gadget ads. The gadgets can be placed on any website or iGoogle (Google’s personalised home page) without any costs for hosting them.

Besides the usual measurement parameters like click-throughs and impressions, advertisers can evaluate the response rates of Gadget Ads through 62 actions done by the viewer, including clicking on a video, clicking on a tab or searching within the widget.

Shailesh Rao, MD, Google India, adds, “We want to leverage our advertising platform to do more than lead generation and be a branding mechanism. We are looking at advertisers interested in building brand awareness.” With the launch of widget advertising, Google may convince digital advertisers in India to look beyond banners and shoshkeles

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Online search leader Google Inc. is expanding the volume of advertising that it delivers to mobile devices, hoping to make more money from the expanding audience of consumers surfing the Web when they’re away from home or the office.

With the expansion announced Monday, any Web site accessible through a mobile Web browser will be able to participate in Google’s vast advertising network. The company previously had been serving up mobile ads based on search requests entered directly into its engine or its partners’ sites.

Now, Google will tie the mobile ads to a wide range of content being scanned by consumers on a cell phone or some other kind of portable device. For instance, someone reading about a football game on a mobile phone might see an ad for sports equipment or memorabilia.

If a consumer clicks on an ad, the advertiser pays Google a fee that is shared with the publisher of the mobile Web page.

The approach mirrors a highly successful network called AdSense that has helped establish Google into one of the world’s most powerful companies. Hundreds of thousands of Web publishers belong to AdSense.

The mobile AdSense network will be open to publishers 13 countries, including the United States, England, Germany, Spain, China and India.

Most of Google’s ad revenue, which is expected to exceed $15 billion this year, currently comes through online searches and Web pages viewed on personal computers connected to the Internet.

Google and its major rivals, Yahoo Inc. and Microsoft Corp., are now trying to extend their ad platforms and other services to the mobile market as sleek new mobile devices like Apple Inc.’s iPhone make it easier to roam the Web without relying on PCs.

Some analysts believe mobile ads eventually will become more even more lucrative than marketing through traditional PCs connected to the Internet.

With the stakes so high, Google is widely believed to be working on some kind of mobile operating system software or perhaps even a mobile phone to ensure its efforts to distribute ads aren’t undermined by the owners of proprietary wireless networks and handsets.

Dilip Venkatachari, product management director for Google AdSense, declined to address questions about whether the Mountain View-based company is developing a phone or a mobile software.

Google also has publicly said it might bid at least $4.6 billion in a government auction of wireless spectrum that would provide faster Internet access than cellular networks. The Federal Communications Commission auction is scheduled to be held early next year.

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Mediatrust writes….Media Trust has extended its services with the launch of a unique Youth Mentoring initiative, funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport(DCMS). The Youth Mentoring initiative, launched on 28th February, is the first of its kind in England and will bring together media professionals and young people aged 14-25 at risk of anti-social behaviour to work together on specific projects.

Tessa Jowell, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Andy Duncan, Chairman of Media Trust and Chief Executive of Channel 4 and Robert Thomson, Editor of The Times launched the initiative at ITV. High profile media companies including BSkyB, ITV, BBC, Emap, Channel 4, Turner, Disney Channel UK, Warner Brothers, IPC Media, AOL and The Times have already joined up to the scheme, pledging to promote it among their staff and drive mentor sign-ups.

Organisations working with young people at risk are naturally placed to act as the gateway reaching this group and spreading the word about the Youth Mentoring opportunity. Barnardo’s, Foyer, The Prince’s Trust, YMCA England, Crime Concern, YCTV, Fairbridge, Dalston Youth Project, Live Magazine and UK Youth are among those already committed to the scheme.

The unique initiative will give young people access to a role model who will be able to offer a range of support including personal advice, encouragement, industry insights and guidance on specific projects. The vision of the initiative is to develop the skills and employability of young people and give them the chance to change their lives in a positive way.

Unlike many other mentoring schemes, Youth Mentoring will offer a “pick ‘n’ mix�? range of programmes for mentors to choose from, including one to one and group mentoring with the option of a short or long term commitment. Youth Mentoring is open to anyone in the media industry, regardless of company, job title or department. All mentors will receive training before embarking on the programme.

Andy Duncan, Chairman of Media Trust said, “Media Trust’s Youth Mentoring is a fantastic way for the media industry to reach out to young people and ultimately help them to change the direction of their lives. I personally will be encouraging staff at Channel 4 to dedicate some time to this initiative, which will be enormously rewarding for both the mentor and the mentee.�?

Robert Thomson, Editor, The Times said, “The Times is proud to be associated with Media Trust’s Youth Mentoring initiative. Those of us who are privileged to work in the media industry know that it is a creative, intelligent industry that has the ability to inspire and educate. We should seize this opportunity to work with young people to help them make informed decisions about their choice of career and to encourage people to find out more about what our industry has to offer.�?

The initiative, funded by the DCMS, is part of the Government’s Respect Action Plan, aimed at tackling anti-social behaviour and creating a modern culture of respect. Youth Mentoring will initially concentrate on 14 key areas in England.

Tessa Jowell, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport said, “This initiative will allow professionals across the whole media landscape to demonstrate how much this industry has to offer. But more than that, the mentors will be helping young people to find a new passion, something that will rekindle their sense of self confidence and self worth. And with the right support some of these young people will end up being the journalists, broadcasters and technicians of tomorrow.�?

Youth Mentoring will sit alongside Media Trust’s existing services, including Media Matching, where media professionals are matched with charities to provide pro-bono or low-cost communications support. The launch of Youth Mentoring coincided with an event to thank Media Trust’s bank of media volunteers.

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Mediatrust writes….Media Trust, the charity that brings the media industry and charities together, launched Communication for the next generation today, 23rd January. The interactive guide is aimed at charities and offers advice on how to communicate with, and market to, young people. It was launched to an audience of charities at Media Trust’s “Successful Youth Marketing�? seminar.

A diverse range of top media industry figures have written articles and features for the guide, offering their insight and perspectives, including Mark Frith, Editor of heat, Jamie Kantrowitz, Senior VP Marketing and Content at MySpace Europe, Kenny Campbell, Editor of Metro and Celia Taylor, Channel Controller, Trouble and Challenge. Available free to charities, this invaluable resource contains practical tips, straight-talking advice and also de-mystifies some of the digital and online jargon which is second nature to the increasingly savvy youth market. Download the Guide (5.8MB) here (right click your mouse to save the document to your computer).

Communication for the next generation has been sponsored by Virgin Mobile and funded by v; an independent charity championing youth volunteering in England.

Katie Simpson, Head of Youth Media at Media Trust said, “We contacted publications such as Nuts, heat, Bliss and online communities such as MySpace as they are perfectly placed to tell charities exactly what appeals to, and excites young people. We deliberately cast the net wide and embraced media that are not traditionally associated with charities. This guide will go a long way in showing charities how to grab the attention of young people and hopefully entertain them along the way. In turn, we hope this will lead to heightened awareness among young people and the charities gaining that all-important brand loyalty.�?

Contributor to the guide Pete Cashmore, Senior Writer at Nuts, sums up the typical Nuts reader: “We men are simple folks. We like girls, we like cars, we like games in which spherical objects are kicked at nets. If any or all of those features are worked into a story in some way, the chances are we are interested.�?

The guide was launched at Media Trust’s “Successful Youth Marketing�? seminar for charities today at Channel 4. High profile speakers included James Fabricant, Head of Marketing and Content MySpace UK and Mark Charkin, Head of Sales for UK and IE, Bebo.

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