Viewing mobile ads in exchange for free or reduced priced videos may not be such a consumer turn-off after all. More than 80 percent of Swisscom customers viewing its ad-funded mobile video channels viewed the business model positively, according to a case study the Swiss operator published with its mobile ad platform technology provider AdInfuse. Swisscom launched two ad-enabled streaming video channels on their Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) Live! portal, one for free comedy videos called Nur zum Spass and the second for premium music video clips from the likes of Eminem, Fergie and Jay-Z, which customers could buy at a reduced price, called Musik Videos für 50 Rappen. Targeted pre- and post-roll video advertisements were placed in active mobile streaming video sessions, while WAP banners were put on WAP service pages (via press release).

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Other findings from the Swisscom-AdInfuse study include:

—85 percent of the music videos published on the ad sponsored Musik Videos für 50 Rappen service achieved higher revenues—though priced cheaper—compared to the same video file being published on the premium streaming music video clips service on the Swisscom portal.

—50 percent of the users claimed they would not have viewed the videos on the ad funded Nur zum Spass video service if it hadn’t been free.

—Up to a third of those using the service were first-time consumers of mobile video. Eighty-two percent of the users viewed the pre-roll ad till the end versus 67 percent for the post-roll ads. Depending on the advertisement, recall rates were as high as 29 percent.

—WAP banner click-through rates averaged 8 percent, driving customers to Swisscom’s premium services.