How much are your minutes worth?

We have to admit, the AdTown wireless isnt often tuned into Mix 102.3. To be honest, were pretty much stuck on iTunes with nothing outside of the 80s getting much a of play.  So we had no idea just how big Mixs '$1000 Minute' on air competition was. But not one to miss out on the chance to game-ify something, the guys at Imagination Entertainment have whipped out a fast paced trivia game play at home version of it faster than a Gouger Street gunman. Launched in Rundle Mall a few days ago, Mix morning stars John Riddell, Jodie Blewett and Snowy were at the star studded launch with Michael Brock, Troy Gray and Ross Aloisi amongst the celebrity players who helped kick things off. (Oh, and not to mention AdTowns very own Sputnik whose cheating trivia effort can still only be described as pitiful.)

Whats interesting about this game though, is the idea that a global company like Imagination would even bother creating a game thats essentially only for the local market. But dont be fooled, theres marketing method to their madness as National Sales & Marketing Manager Sasha Baranikov explains. The idea sprung from the same model we had success with Battle of the Sexes on she said, citing the original game Imagination started selling from local florists before going national and eventually international.

Its a start small strategy they also recently used with Chopply, the game they said was So funny, its @$%&@ criminal based on Heath Franklins Chopper character. We launched that game last year on a smaller scale. We had a limited run of copies available in Video Ezy stores. You would never expect to go and buy a board game in a Video Ezy store but it sold out and it outsold the movies Shrek 3, The Simpsons and Die Hard in the three weeks leading up to Christmas.

For now at least, if you want to get your hands on a copy of the $1000 Minute game, (you know, for your Mix-listening nana or something), youll need to head to a National Pharmacies or Newspower Newsagency. Although if Sasha and the team at Imagination have their way, it will be on a grander scale before too long. Wed like to see it do as well as Battle of the Sexes so we can fast track it to the US she said. Whether or not the game cracks the international market remains to be seen, but theres no question its a proven strategy with Sasha adding I dont think starting small is by any means a bad way to go even if youre a larger scale company. Its just about having a vision, seeing a niche and doing something a bit different.

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