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Following on from our discussion of O2’s event-specific use of Near Field Communication (NFC) technology earlier this summer, and our thoughts on Akoo’s venue-based solutions, interest in and deployment of these services continues apace.

Two Way TV has struck a deal with Mobile Interactive Group (MIG) to install its Simcast™ technology at the new O2 arena in London. And last week, Mobstar Media announced its festival survival kit, developed for Virgin Mobile customers attending this year’s V Festival music events in the UK. The emphasis is on fun, entertainment, and creating a new, mobile-enabled aspect to the enjoyment of an event that contributes to the overall atmosphere in an exciting new way. But they can also deliver real value to everyone involved.

Within its festival survival application pack, Mobstar Media has combined tongue-in-cheek entertainment value with a couple of features that purport to be genuinely useful in typical rock festival situations. The application bundle, which can be downloaded only by Virgin Mobile customers by texting VFEST’ to 82330 contains a “virtual lighter” video to be held above the head in tried and tested concert-going fashion, a flashing screensaver that is supposed to act as a beacon should you get separated from your friends and, perhaps most usefully, a spotlight to help you find your way out of the event/back to your tent in the dark.

In contrast, the deal between Two Way TV and MIG will enable visitors to events at the O2 arena to send pictures and messages to be displayed on giant screens installed at the venue’s bars, cafes, walkways, and even in the main 20,000 seat arena. Two Way TV’s Simcast™ technology will also allow advertisers to execute interactive mobile marketing campaigns. It’s potentially an extremely powerful way of engaging a large, captive audience and adds a new mobile-enabled dimension to the event marketing mix. If the system works in a similar way to Akoo’s m-Venue solution, it should also allow advertisers to collect useful, anonymized data about how users interact with the service that can be leveraged to inform and refine future campaigns. Users will benefit from additional interactivity that makes them feel more involved in the event, and marketing messages that are more relevant to their needs and interests.

It’s still relatively early days for these kind of venue and event-specific services, but we think they have a big future, whether they are designed mainly as a publicity/marketing exercise, or to deliver real value for end users, operators and advertisers alike.

Hamish M.