The iPad: Advertising must be more entertaining

I’m delighted to be able to bring you the first of what I hope will be a series of perspectives from leaders around the mobile industry. Starting us off is CEO of MOFILM, Andy Baker. Given MOFILM’s focus on providing a platform for independent filmmakers to submit ads for some of the world’s leading brands (on a competition basis), I thought it would be good to see how they view the introduction of the iPad into the marketplace.

Over to Andy for his perspective:

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Everyone’s talking about books, newspapers and apps for the iPad, but not many people are talking about film. At MOFILM we’ve built an entire business around the idea that user-generated video content is and will continue to be big on mobile, and we think the iPad’s just going to accelerate that, and in the process, create a new advertising model.

Firstly, the iPad is unique in the mobile world in combining two things: a big, beautiful, touchable screen and the ability to choose, stream and download video content. Yes, it’s nice watching video on the iPhone and iTouch, but video on the iPad is going to be in a different league. And with a nice long battery life, video is going to be one of the major apps.

But filmmakers and advertisers are going to have to rethink the kind of video they push out. iPad users aren’t going to have time for content that bores them. We’ve already seen it happen with You Tube on the iPhone/iTouch: people are hungry for videos that they get a quick hit from, that make them laugh or make them think, the sort of videos they want to pass on to their friends.

This means traditional TV/cinema ads are going to have to change. I can’t imagine that people watching 4 On Demand, for example, will want to sit and watch ‘brand experience’ TV ads endlessly repeated. In fact this kind of content is just going to annoy them.

So what can advertisers do? They have to find original, well made, engaging content, and lots of it, to fill the many available ad spaces without repetition. This is where independent filmmakers come in. MOFILM specialises in attracting ‘user generated content’, but what we really do is put ambitious, creative filmmakers in touch with the brands that need them for their advertising.

The deal is that the filmmakers pour their talent into making a film (they’re well compensated) and the advertisers get several completely original ads. And hopefully, iPad users get video that is a joy, not an annoyance.

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Ah well here’s hoping Andy. Here’s hoping. Thanks for taking the time. I think you’re absolutely right and I hope that now there will (I imagine) be a common, easily accessible platform, we’ll see a ton more of this kind of entertainment-cum-advertising. I also hope we’ll get a lot more off the wall and exciting messaging, rather than the usual ‘it’s a perfume ad’ or ‘it’s a car ad’ bland creative.

By the way, in case you need a quick memory jogger on MOFILM, here’s a quick overview:

MOFILM believes that in the age of accessible, digital filmmaking, an independent filmmaker with just a camera and an idea can produce high-quality, commercial ideas. We want these ideas to be seen. Our competitions provide the platform for filmmakers to make ads for some the world’s leading brands, winning money and prestige in the process.

MOFILM filmmakers are valued by brands. Our competitions give our partners a chance to tap a huge reservoir of international filmmaking talent, as well as developing a wealth of content to be distributed online and via mobile devices. Our partners discover a whole new advertising model.

And if getting stuck into the world of independent advertising floats your boat, head over to www.mofilm.com to view the current competition briefs.