Mobile Video of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Models
The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue just hit news stands and gives readers a way to instantly receive videos of the models on 
their phones. They’re called JAGTAGs and MobilizedTV readers can give it a try: Access the exclusive content by sending a photo of a “mobile beauty” JAGTAG (see right), which will return a video via MMS directly to your phone. Unlike other 2D barcodes, JAGTAG delivers swimsuit videos to both standard phones and smartphones without requiring the consumer to download an application or have access to the mobile web.
JAGTAG designed custom 2D barcodes for the program featuring a “bikini icon” within the code design. Mobile Beauty videos will showcase Brooklyn Decker from the cover shoot, Olympian Lindsay Vonn, Bar Rafaelli, Jessica White, the 2010 “rookies” and more.
Last year, the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition used JAGTAGs for users to receive photos of the rookie models; the magazine sold 4 million copies of that issue. “The 2010 Swimsuit Edition is a mass media event and JAGTAG is the only 2D barcode solution capable of reaching a mass mobile audience,” said Charlie Saunders, Executive Director of Integrated Marketing for Sports Illustrated.
JAGTAG’s technology works instantly on all major U.S. carriers to reach 90 percent of all mobile users phones. “We can return multimedia to 90 percent of all mobile users in the form of images, image galleries, video, audio, text with images,” said JAGTAG founder/Chief Innovation Officer Dudley Fitzpatrick. “Every carrier and handset’s capabilities vary. We can deliver multimedia content via MMS (multimedia messaging service/aka picture message), mobile web link (sms), email, or twitter. Depending upon the phone and wireless network, videos can be between 20 seconds and several minutes long. Number of images can be between 15 to 30. Formatted images and text can be many pages. We can send and MMS and a mobile web link to smart phones. The bottom line is that whatever the specific phone can take, we can deliver.”
Fitzpatrick calls the Sports Illustrated swimsuit model campaign “the most ambitious 2D barcode mobile effort ever.” “More than 60 million readers will have the opportunity to use their phones to instantly enjoy these videos,” he said.
Sports Illustrated featured JAGTAGs within last summer’s Swimsuit Edition, delivering mobile photos of the year’s rookie models. That campaign included magazine ads, transit advertising, phone booths, and Las Vegas hotel key cards. The magazine first used the technology in July of 2009 for the successful launch of the Swimsuit Issue Archives. “What they found was that 25 percent of SI readers were smartphone owners and the other 75 percent owned standard phones,” says Fitzpatrick.
Other JAGTAG campaigns include Fox Entertainment, which shared a mobile video via print advertising in Playboy promoting the Wolverine DVD release. Nokia shared a product video and chance to win a N97 mobile phone. In addition to Fox Entertainment, JAGTAG has made other inroads into Hollywood: “We have run three programs with Fox Entertainment as well as NBC 2010 Winter Olympics,” says Fitzpatrick. “We have more in the works with multiple partners.”
What’s the next step? “It’s to continue to help the mass majority of consumers engage JAGTAGs when they want, where they want, to get what they want,” he says. “For us, it’s not about integrating a new “niche technology” with little impact on the marketplace. It’s about connecting power advertisers and publishers with a mass mobile audience through technology the whole world can use today.”
That includes potential use of JAGTAGs for U.S. broadcasters engaged in distributing their content via mobile. “JAGTAG is a wonderful way to allow mobile consumers to sample their shows,” Fitzpatrick says. “We are also working on on-demand solutions where people can engage a JAGTAG to watch a program instantly on their phone.”
JAGTAG’s technology platform includes the JAGTAG 2D barcode, code-reading, content management, content delivery, and campaign reporting. Upon receipt of the master creative content, JAGTAG customizes and optimizes multiple executions for the carrier’s and mobile device’s technology requirements. All brand content resides on the JAGTAG server.
The original vision of JAGTAG was conceived in February 2006, and the first program was in-market in October 2008. The company’s corporate headquarters, client service, sales and marketing teams are located in Princeton, New Jersey. Its technology headquarters is in Seattle, Washington.
Tags: 2D barcodes, Bar Rafaelli, bikini icon, Brooklyn Decker, Fox Entertainment, JAGTAG, Jessica White, Lindsay Vonn, mass mobile audience, Mobile Beauty, mobile video, MobilizedTV, N97 mobile phone, NBC 2010 Winter Olympics, Nokia, Playboy, Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, Wolverine DVD
This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 10th, 2010 at 8:00 am and is filed under Advertising/Marketing, Content, Devices, Home Feature.
