Pinsight Media+TM Advertising Service from Sprint Makes a Solid Case for Brand Marketers to Go Mobile

Sprint also solidifies agreement with TRUSTe^® to reinforce customer choice for opting in to receive targeted ads, producing a more attentive audience for brand marketers

SAN FRANCISCO (BUSINESS WIRE), January 30, 2013 – No other medium can compete with the immediacy, intimacy and real-time impact of mobile. It provides an ideal platform for marketing as a service to consumers according to Sprint (NYSE:S, news, filings), whose Pinsight Media+ advertising service is sponsoring a panel session today at the Mobile Marketing Association Forum in San Francisco. The panel, taking place from 3:30 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. Pacific time at the Hotel Nikko San Francisco, will focus on consumer mobile advertising and engagement in-the-moment.

During the session, Sprint will reinforce its pro-consumer stance on customer privacy, transparency and choice by announcing it has received certification for its Pinsight Media+ mobile advertising program from TRUSTe, a leading online data privacy management solutions provider. Working with TRUSTe, Sprint completed the TRUSTe certification which includes ongoing monitoring. The TRUSTe Privacy Seal also indicates that the program includes a professionally reviewed privacy policy and has information practices consistent with the Fair Information Practice Principles.

“Mobile customers can become more informed consumers by receiving relevant messages from advertisers in-the-moment that can help their purchase decision,” said panel moderator Dan Polk, who is director of mobile advertising for Sprint. “The key to Pinsight Media+ is that customers have the freedom to opt in to receive these more relevant brand messages. Customers can be confident that no personal information is shared. The TRUSTe certification validates that Sprint is transparent and accountable for responsible management of the customer’s choice of privacy preferences.”

“Given abundant consumer privacy concerns it’s no surprise that consumers look for trustmarks before engaging with services, such as the Sprint mobile advertising program,” said Chris Babel, chief executive officer of TRUSTe. “With the TRUSTe privacy seal, Sprint sends a clear signal to its customers that it respects their personal information.”

Polk will be joined on the panel by John Ferraro, vice president, West Coast Advertising Sales – WhitePages; Jeff Hasen, chief marketing officer – Hipcricket; and Gabi Schindler, chief marketing officer – Amobee. The panel session will explore the possibilities of a full-service advertising model with mobile at the core, while delivering targeted and relevant messages in-the-moment to a receptive audience.

Customer choice

At the heart of the Pinsight Media+ service is Sprint’s commitment to be transparent about our use of customer data and to allow customers to make personal privacy choices. Building on the existing segmentation targeting used today, the new program allows customers to choose whether they would like to share anonymous information about the way they use their mobile device.

Targeted ads will appear on Sprint-owned and -operated properties, both online and mobile; Sprint Web on-deck portal for mobile; and Sprint Zone, as well as third-party publisher properties. Sprint customers will continue to see general advertisements online and in ad-supported applications and content, regardless of whether they have opted in to receive interest-based targeted ads. The targeted ads will be more relevant to the user’s personal interests, with potential offers and value-ads for the right locations at the right times.

For more information, please visit www.pinsightmedia.com.

About Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served nearly 56 million customers at the end of the third quarter of 2012 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. The American Customer Satisfaction Index rated Sprint No. 1 among all national carriers in customer satisfaction and most improved, across all 47 industries, during the last four years. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 3 in both its 2011 and 2012 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.