Coauthored by Michael Hanley and Michael Becker

Much like the milestones being reached and exceeded seemingly daily in the mobile marketing industry, this journal reaches a milestone of its own with the June issue: the one year anniversary of the MMA-IJMM. During the past 12 months we’ve published three issues with 31 articles from leading academic researchers and industry experts from across the globe and, hopefully, helped bridge the mobile marketing knowledge gap and add to the quickly growing body of knowledge about mobile marketing.

This issue exemplifies the breadth of issues being theorized and researched within mobile marketing and the natural evolution of the scientific research process with an evolving form of communication: from theoretical to practical to visionary. In this issue, 10 papers take a critical look at global issues impacting mobile communication and marketing in four areas: advertising and branding, TV and video, interaction and verification, mobile usage index, and new technology.

Four papers look at mobile advertising from an effectiveness, consumer attitude and content perspective. Using a national experimental study, Hairong Li and Brian Stoller examine the ability of mobile web advertising to increase brand recall, brand association and purchase intent. Alex Wang investigates the effect of cross-media integration of SMS text messages and internet ads on consumers’ perceived media engagement, message strength and brand attitudes. Jong Woo Jun and Sangmi Lee investigate the antecedents and consequences of consumer attitudes toward mobile advertising from communication and advertising perspectives. Rafael Salaberry and Larry Upton propose that mobile advertising be used to help subsidize mobile system development and the teaching of English as the global language of commerce via mobile phone in rapidly growing rural areas around the world.

Mobile TV and video are being perceived as major growth areas for mobile content distribution. Kala Seal et al. provide an overview of the mobile TV and video industry in the U.S. and Western Europe, describe the relationships between the principal players and identify technology, pricing and partnership issues. A recommendation for a more efficient supply and revenue model is offered.

In the area of interaction, two thought-provoking articles look at mobile interaction and the evolution of mobile marketing strategies. Jared Braiterman and Nadav Savio propose a model of context and a set of design heuristics for mobile interactions. Their Context of Mobile Interaction posits how mobile has freed users from the desk-bound PC, challenging mobile application designers to focus on mobile people, not mobile devices. Ashok Ranchhod looks at the evolution of technology and its impact on mobile marketing, and creates a Strategic Mobile Marketing Model focused on consumer permission.

As the use of mobile phones by youth to access audio and video content increases, so does the potential exposure of minors to inappropriate content. Michael Colopy and Steve Williams discuss the issues surrounding age and identification verification, privacy and security, and propose an age verification solution for the mobile industry.

In the area of mobile usage index, Marisa Maio Mackay and Oliver Weidlich, in a case study, describe the development and implementation of a web-based survey used to create the Australian Mobile Phone Lifestyle Index. Now in its third year, the survey is being used by industry stakeholders as a source of information about mobile consumers.

Finally, interactivity is an inherent strength of mobile devices. Gewei Ye introduces a new interactive-hybrid technology – the mobile marketing board – that incorporates the use of a hybrid network and a new software application. MMB technology invites mobile consumers to initiate communications with marketers on a mutually accessible and computer-mediated billboard in an interactive manner.

These articles provide perspectives on the past, present and future of the mobile marketing industry, and, hopefully, offer readers key insights and learning about mobile marketing not available through traditional information sources. Our goal as editors is to keep the journal up to date and relevant with articles that reflect academic and industry perspectives of the key issues impacting the industry. The growing list of submissions to the MMA-IJMM reflects its increasing stature to academic researchers and industry contributors.

The recent inclusion of MMA-IJMM articles in the EBSCO research article database will allow researchers from around the world to access and cite articles from the journal. This is a major step in the evolution of the MMA-IJMM. As the mobile marketing industry evolves, we will strive to stay ahead of evolving trends and issues that impact the future success of the industry. We hope you find the MMA-IJMM to be useful and relevant, and consider being a contributor.

References

Airwide Solutions. (2006, 21//Feb.). 89% of Major Brands Planning to Market Via Mobile. Retrieved 5/11/2006, from Airwide Solutions:http://www.airwidesolutions.com/news.asp?nav_id=2324&lang_id=E.

Becker, M., & Hanley, M. (2006, 18/Aug.). Mobile Marketing Research Priorities: Roadmap to Engaging the “Connected Customer”. MMA Messenger. Mobile Marketing Association. Retrieved 15/10/06,

from http://mmaglobal.com/modules/wfsection/article.php?articleid=535.

Informa Telecoms and Media (2006, Sept.). Global Mobile Forecast. Retreived 9/11/2006, from http://www.cellular-news.com/story/19252.php.