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Google Fi is running TV commercial ads for the first time. The six-year-old MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) is doing television advertising in six local markets.
These ads were first noticed by Best MVNO. Google Fi launched a TV ad dubbed, “Connect Safely with Privacy & Security Features” on May 3.
The ad has been aired over 1,000 times in the markets of Phoenix, Minneapolis, Houston, Detroit, Denver, and Atlanta. Wave7 Research principal Jeff Moore revealed this information.
Google Fi TV commercial ads attract more customers
Google’s cellular service was originally called Project Fi, and it was launched in 2015.
The MVNO was later renamed as Google Fi, and it went on to expand its Android device compatibility and even support iPhones, according to 9to5Google.
As part of its expansion efforts, Google’s MVNO is trying to lure more customers through its latest advertising campaign. These Google Fi ads are short videos that focus on a different aspect of the virtual network operator.
In 2019, Google Fi teamed up with a new season of Stranger Things. In the same year, the search engine giant released a series of about 16-seconds ads on YouTube.
Google Fi latest TV commercial ad
Moore pointed out that the recently airing ads are local, “not national network or cable ads.” He did not see excessive local spot advertising.
He believes Google has gone for budget advertising, which may be experimental. Moore also noted that these Google Fi commercial ads have been there online for several years.
He noted that there is plenty of this advertising. Moreover, the television ad is also available on YouTube TV. Google uses privacy and security features such as spam blocking and built-in VPN to protect users’ personal information, according to Google Fi’s website.
It is unclear what a built-in VPN refers to for a virtual network operator. On May 25, Boost Mobile founder Peter Adderton tweeted about Google Fi’s privacy and security features.
In his tweet, Adderton said it was ironic that Google, which owns Android OS and App store, is concerned about the privacy of its customers. Google Fi’s recent advertisements come after the company launched its Simply Unlimited plans in April.
Google Fi prefers to stay low key
Google’s MVNO launched in 2015, but the company hasn’t focused much on promoting it. Google doesn’t even reveal how many subscribers Google Fi has. However, the number could be in the 500,000 range, according to an educated guesstimate from prepaidcompare.
In March, T-Mobile said it will be expanding its collaboration with Google. As part of this collaboration, the mobile telecommunication company said it will establish Messages by Google as the default rich messaging solution for its customers using Android smartphones.