Six versions of the new 20-second TV infomercial have been crafted by Contract Advertising.
PCCW is attempting to highlight how its range of services – from IPTV, sports, WiFi and email – are provided by its 3G platform, an offering that is considered a key differntiator with its competitors - CSL, SmarTone-Vodafone and Hutchison Telecom.
Since its launch in early 2006, PCCW has added a number of new offerings to help build 3G appeal.
Users can now watch 13 Now TV channels on their mobiles, access music and photo libraries and – significantly – watch English Premier League live broadcasts. 3,000 WiFi hotspots across Hong Kong also enable Internet and email access.
“We really hope that customers appreciate PCCW mobile is not just for voice communication, said PCCW associate VP for brand and media management, Bonnie Soo.
“There are approximately two million 2.5G and 3G users in Hong Kong but — unlike other 3G operators – we don’t charge extra for our services and infotainment,” added Cathy Liu, PCCW associate vice president for mobile marketing.
Media agency Maxus has spread the HK$14 million (US$1.8 million) campaign spend across a range of mass media channels, including TV, radio and print.
In addition, specific youth-friendly magazines are being utilised to better communicate with mobile netizens.
At present, Hong Kong’s 2.5G and 3G market numbers approximately 2.5 million subscribers. PCCW claims 921,000 of these at present, compared to Hutchison Telecom’s 800,000 users.
SmarTone-Vodafone and CSL, meanwhile, declined to provide their subscriber numbers.
PCCW’s new drive comes amid reports that mainland giant China Unicom is considering bidding for a CDMA-based 3G licence by the end of this year.
