I saw this one coming - just amazed it took so long. With all the pieces in place USA Today has officially launched a mobile search that combines content (in the form of text alerts) and interactive ads, DM News reports. The newspaper publisher rounds out this D2C offer by promoting its mobile news services in the daily paper’s print edition. Put simply, users find a number in certain sections of the newspaper they can text if they want more information – replies to these text messages feature a sponsored interactive ad. “It’s basically a mobile search platform and what it allows us to do is take a non-interactive platform, a newspaper, and make the print product interactive through the use of text messaging and short codes,” Matt Jones, director of mobile strategy and operations at USA Today’s parent company Gannett Digital, is quoted as saying. He also said Gannett aims to expand its text messaging and mobile content with an initiative called “information centers.” The strategy is to enhance current media content with more local content.

But the real news is not the service; it’s the bold move of a brand into the mobile search/mobile advertising space. It makes sense – and it’s been done before in the Internet. Brands have the content and the traffic – and if they partner with search engine providers (Gannett has a stake in mobile search and messaging company 4INFO) they can cover all the bases and collect all the revenues. I know of other media brands gearing up to follow this lead – and it will be interesting over the next months to see how they take on mobile search companies that move on their turf. And a word to white label providers: Maybe a singular focus on mobile operators needs a rethink as more media companies line up for a piece of the action.

• USA Today Launches Text News Service; Inserts Ads, Promos
• 4INFO Starts Advertising In Its SMS Search Service