Moviegoers Get Texted About Free Trailer Downloads
Moviegoers at some Twentieth Century Fox and Loews Theaters will get a text message alert if they walk close to a kiosk letting them know they can download free content related to this summer’s movie releases.
Moviegoers at the Loews Lincoln Square in New York, the Loews Universal Citywalk in Los Angeles and the Loews Metreon in San Francisco can download content from the kiosks including movie trailers, ringtones and wallpapers related to Fox movies Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Fantastic Four and Kingdom of Heaven. The promotion began in May and runs through Aug. 24.
“We want to push for new and innovative channels to reach our movie-goers, to give them ways to interact with our movies before and after they enjoy the films on the big screen,” Fox Co-director of Marketing Pamela Levine said in a statement. “Loews Theatres is a like-minded partner, and we are both confident that this trial will be a stunning success, extending our films into the ever-growing mobile world.”
Consumers need to be within 10 meters of the download stations, which look like traditional movie theater standees and are powered by Bluetooth, a short-range wireless technology, said Krista Van Lewen, spokesperson for WideRay, a provider of on-location content distribution platforms that is working with Fox and Loews on the promotion.
At the standees, moviegoers with Bluetooth-enabled phones will be notified automatically of the downloading opportunity. It takes less than 30 seconds to download a full-length movie trailer, and there is no extra fee from the consumer’s service carrier.
