• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, April 23, 2008

ID Media has signed a deal with 4INFO that will allow its clients to try out direct-response SMS messaging on a cost-per-response basis, at least initially. ID Media, a direct-response agency owned by the Interpublic Group of Companies, will put the service at the disposal of its roster of Fortune 500 clients.

 

Although ID says it's too soon to know which clients will choose to participate, its roster includes big names such as Johnson & Johnson, Kraft, and American Express.

In 4INFO's system, consumers can send short numeric codes to get ad-supported content from a variety of categories, including news, sports, entertainment, stocks and weather. Beneath this content, 4INFO delivers a brief text ad that invites the user to click to call, email, send an SMS message, or access more information via wireless application protocol (WAP) which brings them to a mobile Internet site.

These interactive features allow 4INFO to operate the service on a cost-per-response basis similar to cost-per-action on the Internet. 4INFO claims 5 million active users in the U.S. It drives users to send short numeric codes to access content through print, TV, and Web advertising that offers, for example, a free ad-supported update on a particular stock price.

It also draws news and entertainment content from NBC, TV Guide, MTV, USA Today, the NBA, and E!, among other publishers.