Introduction to THE mVAS vertical

The Mobile Value-Added Services (mVAS) vertical emerged and started gaining traction globally in the early 2000s, initially used for selling content like ringtones, games, and themes for mobile phones. To purchase these, mobile phone users simply had to send an SMS to a premium short code.

Alternative names for this vertical
became established worldwide as well,
including:

• Wap-Click
• Сarrier Billing
• Mobile Subscriptions

Access to various online resources, such as games, videos, music, horoscopes, and more, began to be offered for sale.

Content sales shifted to a subscription model, allowing users to pay in small, automatic deductions from their mobile phone accounts.

Purchases and subscriptions could be completed on the site providing access, significantly simplifying the process and boosting conversion rates.

Affiliate programs emerged, offering a multitude of services and enlisting affiliate marketers to promote them.

However, increased scrutiny by mobile operators remains a challenge. Since promotional methods are not always “clean,” complaints from users tend to go directly to these operators.

In the 2020s, both technology advancements and the COVID-19 pandemic further boosted the mVAS vertical. The number of mobile internet users increased, driving up the demand for mobile entertainment and other mobile content, making traffic generation for mVAS offers as profitable as ever!

The role of mobile operators in the vertical

•

When a user subscribes to an mVAS offer, charges are deducted directly from their mobile operator’s account in the form of small, regular payments.

•

The operator shares revenue with the affiliate program using a Revenue Share model.

•

The affiliate program, in turn, compensates mediabuyer marketers with a one-time payment for acquiring a new user.

•

Arbitrage marketers work to attract new users to the offers.

Subscription process overview

mVAS offers are attractive to affiliate marketers due to the ease of attracting new users. For end users, it often only takes a few clicks on the landing page to complete a purchase. The diversity of page designs allows for nearly effortless customization to appeal to any country’s audience.

Current flow options for target actions:

1/2 Click
The simplest flow where the user only has to click one or two buttons.

PIN Submit
The most popular flow; users enter their phone number and then input a code sent via SMS.

MO
Users send an SMS with specific text to a short service number.

Сlick2sms (an improved MO model)
Users click a button to open an SMS pre-filled with the required text.

USSD (An additional option for PIN submit)
Users enter their phone number and then receive a USSD command in a pop-up window where they confirm by clicking a button.

IVR
Paid calls to special numbers; users call a premium-rate phone number, and the longer they stay on the line, the higher the payout.

Affiliate Dragons offers the largest catalog of verified and truly profitable mVAS vertical offers.

Join now, start earning, and stay tuned for our upcoming articles — more insights are coming to fuel your mVAS growth!