O2
reaches for stars with Pop Idol
O2 to provide interactive mobile services for Pop
Idol
05 August 2003
O2 today announced that it will provide a range
of interactive mobile services for the second series of smash-hit
reality entertainment show Pop Idol, which launches on ITV1 in
the UK, August 9th 2003.
O2 has already had phenomenal success in delivering
groundbreaking interactive mobile services for shows such as Big
Brother and Popstars: The Rivals. In the latest series of Big
Brother, 1.5 million fans used their mobile to interact with the
show, an increase of 25% on the previous year.
O2 will work with FremantleMedia (who co-own the Idols format
with 19TV and whose UK production company, Thames Television,
is co-producing Pop Idol with 19TV) to provide a range of services
including:
- Text voting
- Picture Messaging (MMS alerts)- subscribers to the service
are sent the latest news, with a picture attached from the show
- News Alerts
- Text Quizzes and Competitions
- Ticker Service displaying viewers text messages will be shown
on ITV2's Pop Idol Extra show
- Java games
- Downloads, including graphics and ring tones
In addition, O2 will bring fans exclusive content via its dedicated
mobile Pop Idol web site and the O2 WAP service specially designed
to promote Pop Idol services. O2 customers will be able to access
Pop Idol using O2 Active, - a branded, colour icon menu service
that offers new and existing customers a simple means to access
and navigate its growing range of mobile data and multimedia services.
Laurence Alexander, Product Director at O2 UK, said: "We
have helped change the way people watch TV, turning it into a
two-way interactive experience for millions of viewers. This trend
will continue as we learn from our experiences and increase the
range of services on offer this year. Viewers will be able to
have even more interaction and really feel a part of the programme."
Simon Spalding, CEO at Fremantlemedia Licensing Worldwide, said:
"With such a popular show that enjoys a huge amount of audience
participation, any solution we use for text-voting and other mobile
powered activities such as quizzes and games needs to be robust
and reliable. O2 is the clear leader in this area and we can trust
that they really know what they are doing. This is why we chose
to work with them for the new series of Pop Idol."
Pop Idol applications will also be developed by O2's Revolution
service, Europe's biggest channel for mobile application developers.
Applications from Revolution will be promoted on the Pop Idol
web and WAP portals, giving developers direct association with
the Pop Idol brand.
Pop Idol begins on 9th August on ITV1 and ITV2.
O2
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