The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) has published the fifth edition of its Mobile Advertising Guidelines. First published in 2005, the guidelines are designed to provide industry-standard technical specifications and best practices. The MMA has also published two complementary documents for emerging opportunities in mobile marketing: Draft Guidelines for Rich Media and the Universal Mobile Ad Package.

The guidelines provide recommendations for the global ad units used in mobile advertising across the mobile web, messaging, applications, and mobile video and TV. The latest edition features several major additions and updates, including: additional ad-unit sizes; elimination of aspect-ratio requirements for banner ads; and more considerations for Mobile Rich Media Advertising.

The Rich Media Draft Guidelines provide a high-level overview of Rich Media mobile ad units, plus criteria for creating and executing successful campaigns, and proposals for how the MMA will continue to provide guidance to the market going forward. Mobile Rich Media is an emerging category that goes beyond text, static and animated graphics or video. It enables multimedia applications to be encapsulated in virtually any context that displays on a mobile device, and provides consumers with a more compelling, immersive brand experience.

The Universal Mobile Ad Package is a subset of the MMA’s widely-adopted Mobile Advertising Guidelines, designed to streamline the creative and publishing processes. By producing creative material according to these universal ad units, brands and agencies can more easily advertise with all publishers that are compliant with the MMA’s universal mobile ad package.

“The MMA’s advertising guidelines have become the industry standard, providing the best practices that are key for maximizing the mobile channel’s reach and effectiveness,” notes Greg Stuart, global CEO of the MMA. “With the addition of the Rich Media and Universal Mobile Ad Package guidelines, the MMA continues its commitment to providing the ecosystem with the frameworks necessary to capitalize on emerging opportunities.”
The latest edition of the guidelines can be downloaded here. The Rich Media Mobile Advertising Guidelines can be downloaded here. And the Universal Mobile Ad Package can be downloaded here. The MMA welcomes public feedback on all three documents through March 4, 2011. Comments and suggestions can be submitted to: [email protected]