Have you ever been so frustrated with your cellphone carrier that you’ve wanted to toss your phone? Mobilicity gave Canadians the unique opportunity to voice pent-up frustration on Oct. 13 with its first “Canadian Mobile Phone Throwing Championship.”
Contestants hurled their phones into a huge inflatable tent and had their throws measured with computer software. Canadian Women’s Javelin Olympian Liz Gleadle offered participants pointers on how give their best throw.
The event was held at Toronto’s Varsity Centre and was inspired by a similar event held in Finland, said Andrea Fiederer, Mobilicity director of customer marketing, Canada. “Nobody was doing it in Canada and we thought it would be a fun way to get people together and release their pent-up frustration.”
“This was a way to say ‘We’re a great alternative. We don’t force you to sign contracts and pay high fees. We have some of the lowest rates out there right now. You’ve been taken advantage of by the mobile phone carriers, so toss your phone and see how far you can throw it,’” said Fiederer.
The event was promoted through blogger outreach, print ads in daily commuter papers like Metro, as well as on Facebook and Twitter. Mobilicity also collaborated with University of Toronto on online promotions and social media. The company’s in house design team created a logo for the event.
Stewart Lyons, president and chief operating officer at Mobilicity, estimated that a few hundred people participated in what he hopes will be an annual event, and that it will be “bigger and better for next year.”
The winner of the championship pitched his phone just over 80 yards. Turns out he’s a former minor league baseball player for the Colorado Rockies and had been practicing on the weekends with his Blackberry. He was awarded a $5,000 cash prize, one free year of Mobilicity’s unlimited data, talk and text service, and a Samsung Galaxy SIII smartphone
