NEW YORK (AP) — Twitter said Tuesday that it plans to buy
Indian mobile marketing company ZipDial as it tries to reach new users in
developing regions.
The San Francisco company did not disclose financial details
or when it expects the deal to close.
ZipDial connects brands with consumers in emerging markets
where mobile data is expensive and Wi-Fi connections are limited. With ZipDial,
consumers bypass data charges. They call a unique phone number, hang up and
ZipDial sends them free texts or voicemails with sports scores, coupons or
other content and information.
Where to Go for Higher Yields in
Emerging Markets
Calling and hanging up is also a way to follow users of
Twitter. A phone number can be assigned to politicians or celebrities, for
example, and users automatically receive tweets through texts instead of going
to Twitter's website or app. Phone numbers can be printed on billboards,
newspaper ads or TV commercials. Founded in 2010, ZipDial has created campaigns
for beverage maker PepsiCo and toy maker Mattel Inc., according to its website.
At the end of June, Twitter had 271 million average monthly
users. The company said the acquisition will give people access to its service
in Brazil, India, Indonesia and other countries where people are going online
for the first time.
Shares of Twitter Inc. rose 72 cents, or 1.9 percent, to
$38.03 in afternoon trading Tuesday.
No comments:
Post a Comment