ORLANDO, Fla., March 29, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) (www.mmaglobal.com) today announced the creation of an Urban Special Interest Group (USIG). The group's charter is to foster awareness and adoption of urban-oriented mobile content by creating networking, education and policy opportunities among urban content owners, mobile service providers, technologists, vendors and strategic partners.
The MMA USIG's initial focus will be to create a collaborative environment where urban content providers, service providers and brands can find meaningful ways to develop synergistic business and community opportunities -- with initial focus areas which include:
* Identifying the needs of the urban community (i.e., content owners, brand owners, media channels) for mobile technology and new media business acumen and resources. * Identifying the relationship and educational needs of the carrier community and all ecosystem participants regarding urban development and content opportunities.
The MMA USIG is co-chaired by John Huffman IV, CEO of Real Hip Hop, and Christopher Jones, Senior Product Marketing Manager of Boost Mobile. The USIG will hold its kickoff meeting in April.
"Content is one of the means by which a brand can extend its reach through the mobile channel," said Laura Marriott, executive director of the MMA. "John and Chris have been passionate about the need to educate all players in the urban mobile ecosystem -- and we are excited about the launch of this new initiative. The USIG will also further diversify MMA's membership, one of our key goals for 2007."
"The USIG will help educate the urban community and investors about the exciting opportunities in the urban mobile market," Huffman said. "Increasing the overall diversity of the urban community in the mobile marketing ecosystem is key for ensuring that mobile marketing is a viable way to reach the widest possible variety of demographics."
"As a tool for reaching a broad range of diverse constituencies, mobile marketing must engage the full spectrum of stakeholders in the mobile content value chain," Jones said. "The USIG is designed to provide a forum for identifying and serving every member of today's diverse mobile ecosystem."
USIG membership is open to all MMA member companies.
About the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA)
The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) is the premier global non-profit association established to lead the growth of mobile marketing and its associated technologies. The MMA is an action-oriented organization designed to clear obstacles to sustainable market development, establish mobile media guidelines and best practices for sustainable growth, and evangelize the mobile channel for use by brands and content providers. The 400+ global member companies include agencies, advertisers, hand-held device manufacturers, wireless operators, aggregators, technology enablers, market research firms and all companies focused on marketing via the mobile channel. The Mobile Marketing Association's global headquarters are located in the United States. For more information, please visit www.mmaglobal.com.
The Mobile Marketing Association logo is available at http://www.primezone.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=2339