Microsoft opens ad space on MSN Mobile

Microsoft Corp. has jumped into the mobile advertising fray. MSN Mobile customers in the United States will begin seeing banner and text advertisements as soon as today.
Microsoft said the ads will all conform to the Mobile Marketing Association’s mobile advertising guidelines. Paramount Pictures and Jaguar Cars North America are among the first companies to advertise on MSN Mobile.
“Microsoft is continuing to make significant investments in the MSN Mobile portal, adding new services and content that enhance the mobile experience and make it one of the best in the industry,” said Joanne Bradford, corporate VP and chief media officer of MSN.
“By incorporating advertising on MSN Mobile, we are allowing advertisers to extend their existing campaigns from PCs to games and now to mobile phones, further delivering on our vision to extend advertising across multiple platforms and devices,” she added.
The offering is based in part on technology Microsoft acquired through its purchase of Paris-based ScreenTonic SA earlier this year. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
In related news, Microsoft said it added new features to MSN Mobile that allow users to view movie reviews, theaters and show times, and purchase tickets directly from their cellphone via movietickets.com. Additionally, users can purchase ringtones, wallpapers, games and video clips thanks to a partnership with Thumbplay Inc.
Microsoft’s mobile Web activities coincide with similar pushes by Internet destinations including AOL L.L.C., Google Inc. and others.