NEW DELHI: Affle Group, a leading smart media company, has announced the launch of M2X, a $3.3 million (Rs 20 crore) fund, in association with the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA).
M2X or Mobile 2x is set up to enable brands, publishers, agencies, app developers and entrepreneurs to create mobile assets, increase mobile ad spends and promote development of innovative technologies in emerging mobile markets with particular focus on India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore.
M2X is an industry-first effort, spearheaded by Affle Group with support of MMA, to fuel the growth of the mobile marketing ecosystem in emerging markets. Qualifying companies will be able to submit their applications to M2X to gain access to funds under two broad categories: (i) dollar-for-dollar co-investment with advertisers, agencies and publishers for mobile asset creation and advertising campaigns that use mobile as a medium with Affle; and (ii) investment in start-ups or existing companies that are investing into technology innovation and IP creation in the field of mobile advertising.
Affle Groupe chairman Anuj Khanna Sohum said, “We see huge untapped potential for mobile advertising in developing Asian markets. Some significant bottlenecks we see the industry facing in this part of the world include lack of quality mobile assets, limited or no investments in mobile advertising by some brands and limited investments in technology innovation. Affle’s M2X fund is a very unique sector-focused fund that will help grow the industry and help boost entrepreneurship in this domain. Through our dollar-for-dollar matching co-investment scheme, we plan to help qualified brands and publishers increase the value proposition and user traction of their mobile assets. Also through our entrepreneur acceleration program we are confident of providing a significant impetus to ad technology innovation in mobile-first markets.”
“Half of world’s mobile population is located in Asia, and a substantial portion of this is in emerging markets and the race is on to connect with the next billion consumers. The launch of Affle’s M2X fund comes at an opportune time to mitigate any reticence on the part of advertisers and publishers to add mobile to their media mix, particularly where budgets have been cited as a reason. M2X will also enable faster go-to-market for companies in this region who are creating products and solutions for the mobile advertising space. M2X is a strategic industry-focused initiative that aims to encourage this community to place their bets on the power of mobile, while sharing in risk and therefore increasing return-on-investment,” said Mobile Marketing Association Asia Pacific MD Rohit Dadwal.
As part of the MMA’s involvement in M2X, applications from existing members will be reviewed on a priority basis. In addition, non-members that meet the criteria for funding will automatically be eligible for co-funding towards regional MMA membership. Through the MMA, qualifying companies will benefit from access to international guidelines on global standards, measurement and best practise in mobile marketing and advertising.
The launch of M2X is in line with Affle Group’s commitment and determination to lead the change and drive growth for the mobile ad industry. This mobile ad fund will aid and assist all major stakeholders as well as industry players to capitalize on the opportunities in this market.
