Mobile Affiliate Network Launches at ad:tech

As the mobile marketing arena heats up, it only makes sense that affiliate networks become immersed in mobile. A company called OfferMobi is using this week’s ad:tech conference in San Francisco to launch what it claims is the “first U.S.-based affiliate network focused on the mobile web.”

While initial details are sketchy and the company’s website is bare bones, OfferMobi says it is launching with “over 50 U.S. and international offers” and that its network is “completely risk-free” to advertisers because of a model based entirely on CPA (Cost Per Action). The company is working in partnership with Ring Revenue to also provide targeted pay per call services for advertisers who don’t have a call center solution.

Part of OfferMobi’s pitch is providing education and assistance to both advertisers and affiliates. The company recognizes it is forging new ground as “the next generation in performance marketing,” so it provides free mobile tools, such as “3Search” and “Mobile Preview,” to help its users. OfferMobi makes mobile-ready landing pages available to advertisers that are compatible with the majority of mobile phones and devices.

OfferMobi says it can help advertisers build their own custom mobile landing pages and execute creative.

One looming question about OfferMobi’s entry into the marketplace is how other affiliate networks will react. A quick scan of the major affiliate networks’ websites shows little if any mention of mobile capabilities. Nonetheless, mobile is certainly on the minds of some of the leading players.

Kerri Pollard of Commission Junction says that in 2010, “we expect opportunity in terms of social media and mobile.” With the smartphone market booming, Kerri says Commission Junction will “gain a heck of a lot more traction [in mobile] than in years past.”

Jonathan Levine of LinkShare agrees his company is well-positioned to be a mobile leader because of parent company Rakuten, but he also says “the thing that nobody’s figured out yet, in the US, is the common wallet or payment system. Something we have figured out with Rakuten in Japan. …I think the company that figures out how to broker the common wallet hurdle is going to do very well on mobile.”

Larry Adams of the Google Affiliate Network thinks the increased sophistication of smartphones, particularly in their ability to browse websites, will help fuel adoption of mobile marketing. “I think with a lot more smartphones out there people will become more comfortable and start buying stuff on their phones,” says Adams. But he points out that until e-commerce sites have more mobile experiences, there won’t be a “huge opportunity” for affiliate marketing.

If the current lack of mobile-specific offerings by leading affiliate networks is any indication, it appears that OfferMobi has gained at least a short-term advantage in the mobile marketing space.