The Walt Disney Co. has a sophisticated mobile strategy, using free applications to create buzz for upcoming movie launches while it drives sales of paid mobile games and applications.

Disney distributes applications on free, freemium and paid models, using its mobile Web site and existing application inventory to cross-promote its movies, TV shows and mobile content. The latest example is the newly launched Tron application for the iPhone and iPod touch, which Disney began promoting last week at the San Diego Comic-Con International Convention.

?For the launch of Disney's Tron app, we wanted to capitalize on the history between the franchise and Comic-Con,? said Stephen Saiz, director of marketing at Disney Interactive Studios, Glendale, CA.

?It was at Comic-Con in 2008 that ?Tron: Legacy? was first introduced to fans via a secret test trailer, and we knew the studio would have a huge presence at this year's show [at a booth] called ?ComiTron,?? he said.

Disney Interactive Studios, a division of Disney Interactive Media Group, self-publishes and distributes a portfolio of multi-platform video games, mobile games and interactive entertainment worldwide.

Tron: Legacy is a 3D action-adventure film slated to hit theaters Dec. 17.

On-site app marketing
By downloading the Tron application, Comic-Con attendees can "Enter the Grid" by checking in at the show via the iPhone's GPS system, which also updates the user's Facebook status.

Anyone who checked in at Disney?s on-site ComiTron booth and opened up the application received an exclusive "golden ticket" to the Studio's offsite ComiTron event, revealing information about the event's location and timing.

Here is a screengrab of the Comic-Con flier with the call-to-action:

The Tron application is free to download and fans can play a game, view a trailer and receive pre-sale order information for the Tron Evolution video game.

The application will also update to include additional video and music, as well as free and premium games.

The target demographic for the Tron application is fans of the franchise and relevant consumers ages nine and over.

Disney is taking advantage of its house inventory and extensive partnerships to get the word out about the application.

For example, the application has been mentioned in all of the studio?s promotional materials for Comic-Con and attendees of the theatrical panel last Thursday at Comic-Con were encouraged to download the application.

?Communication surrounding our app is also fully integrated amongst all the major film marketing outlets such as the official Tron site at http://disney.go.com/tron,? Mr. Saiz said.      

Toy Story 3, Jelly Car 2 apps
Coming off the announcement of the company's acquisition of Tapulous, a Palo Alto-based developer of music games for the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch such as Tap Tap Revenge, Disney recently hit two major mobile milestones in the Apple App Store.

Disney's Toy Story 3 application for the iPhone and iPod touch surpassed 1.7 million downloads less than one month after launching on June 15.

A franchise portal on the iPhone, Toy Story 3 lets fans play, personalize and stay connected to their favorite Toy Story characters, stories and happenings through both free and premium content (see story).

The other milestone was achieved by the driving platform game JellyCar 2, which has reached platinum status by surpassing 1 million downloads on the iPhone and iPod touch at $0.99 each.

The application launched on Nov. 7, 2009, and shot up to the No. 1 Paid App position in less than two days, according to Disney.

For JellyCar 2, Disney initially targeted the existing subscriber base of the original JellyCar application.

This included releasing a teaser trailer for the upcoming JellyCar 2 application within JellyCar, which had been viewed nearly 1 million times by the time JellyCar 2 was released.

?This awareness propelled us to No. 1 on the Top Paid App list within 36 hours and we?ve been ranked within the Top 100 since,? Mr. Saiz said.

?To maintain our position, we?ve continued to update the app with new features and have promoted them using mobile and social media,? he said.

In April of 2010, Disney released an iPad version of the game, which is $2.99.

Mobile Magic
Disney has also launched an application designed to enhance consumers? experience when they visit one of its theme parks.

Disney tapped UIEvolution for the creation of the Mobile Magic application in partnership with Verizon Wireless.

The application is available for $9.99 for a 180-day subscription, and there is also a free trial version.

While the current version of Mobile Magic is a Brew application compatible with Verizon?s feature phones, Disney?s goal is to make it available on all devices on the Verizon network, with RIM?s BlackBerry and Google?s Android both high priorities.

?The app knows where you are and what?s going on around you so you can see the food options that are nearby, what the current attraction wait times and FastPass return times are, and even what characters are closest to you,? said Tom Aronson, digital marketing director at Disney Parks, Anaheim, CA.

?We wanted to make it even easier for our guests to explore the parks,? he said. ?Ultimately we wanted to improve our guests? experience by helping them get more done, experience more attractions and meet more characters.

?This is the first time we?ve provided this level of information to our guests, and Mobile Magic has been a success.?

Final Take
Dan Butcher, associate editor, Mobile Marketer

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