UK MVNO Blyk claims its advertising-funded business model is growing by 3,000 subscribers every week and has a total customer base of 30,000 at present. According to a Mobile Entertainment report, the company also claims that click-through rates are still running at a level of 12 to 43 percent, as reported last November. The report adds that one campaign for Penguin books, inviting users to download an audio chapter of Nick Hornby’s novel Slam, was clicked through by 45% of recipients.

Launched last September, Blyk is a free service aimed at 16 to 24 year olds, particularly students. It offers 43 minutes of voice and 217 texts a month for free as long as users opt in to receive up to six ads to their phone a day. Forty-five advertisers partnered with Blyk at launch, including Sony Ericsson, Coca Cola, Sony BMG, I-play, Ford, Adidas and MasterCard. Based in Helsinki, the company was set up by a former president of Nokia. Blyk says it is on target to achieve 50,000 subscribers by March and 100,000 by the end of the year.