Burger King serves mobile food for thought

Mobile content snacking took a turn towards the literal this week when Burger King announced an agreement with Virgin Mobile USA and Warner Music Group to introduce the fast-food giant's BK Value Menu concept to the mobile platform, offering subscribers a selection of ringtones for the same $1 price tag attached to bacon cheeseburgers, onion rings and five-piece chicken tenders. The ad-supported Virgin Mobile Ringtone Value Menu initiative enables the MNVO's customers to purchase value-priced ringtones from a series of WMG acts, and Burger King will support the promotion by sponsoring WAP banner ads and mailing out SMS blasts. It's not Burger King's first entry into the mobile market, either: Last year, the chain inked a licensing arrangement with mobile content provider Mobliss to create downloadable games featuring its vaguely sinister corporate mascot The King.

For all their obvious differences, the fast food and mobile content industries are a lot alike. Both are built on business models optimized for harried, on-the-go consumers. Both offer their products at relatively low prices. Both make those products available virtually anywhere at any time. And let's be honest: Both offer somewhat compromised customer experiences--put bluntly, Burger King is to fine dining what mobile movies are to IMAX. But there's a time and a place for fast food, just as there is for mobile entertainment--in fact, it's pretty much the same time and place. Sooner or later, everyone has to take a break and relax, regardless of their schedule. Fast food and mobile content don't compete for this window of downtime--they complement each other.

The similarities between the industries and their customer demographics underline the possibilities for future fast food/mobile synergy. Mobile advertising and m-coupons are obvious avenues to explore, but the alternatives are endless. How about printing a short code on Whopper wrappers that offers customers a mobile video clip to screen while they eat? Or maybe free ringtones in lieu of Kids Meal prizes? Virgin Mobile USA's decision to apply the BK Value Meal model to content is also intriguing: It's a channel for Warner Music to introduce some of its lesser-known acts and for the operator to promote mobile content consumption, all at an impulse-buy price point. Mobile can learn a lot more from how Burger King and McDonald's do business--maybe fast food isn't devoid of nutritional value after all. - Jason