Free MVNO Blyk to discontinue service…or not

If Blyk really isn’t looking to exit the consumer space, no one can be blamed for thinking they would. Said Blyk UK CEO Antti Öhrling: “There won’t be an MVNO when we launch the partnership model. The whole model of engaging is appealing to other operators.” So pardon the press, Blyk, if they interpreted that first line as the company’s exit from the consumer space. “There won’t be an MVNO” to most people means “the MVNO will no longer exist.” In response to the allegations, Blyk put spokesperson Ann Sarimo front and center:

“We are not closing shop. We are actively expanding, and we are in negotiations with partners right now. Our members are our core asset. Our total proposition is partly based on the advertising side of things, but it’s also about the whole user experience and audience management. We are not just a technology solution, we are a total mobile marketing solution, based in part on the advertising and messaging component, but it’s very much about a total experience and an audience of happy, engaged users.

This does make sense. By partnering with larger operators like O2, Orange, and Vodafone, Blyk becomes more appealing to advertisers. That means more ad sales, which means more profit and the ability to further expand the business. The questions, of course, are of how the carrier partnerships will work, and why carriers would want to partner with a service they’d also compete with? We should learn more as these negotiations move further along.]]>