Media giant Univision Communications Inc. is expanding delivery of mobile services to Univision Radio, one of the leading Spanish-language radio groups nationwide.

The company has partnered with mobile marketing software company HipCricket for this initiative. Univision Movil will oversee programs created through this partnership.

"HipCricket's very excited to ally ourselves with one of the biggest names in Hispanic media," said Eric Herber, president and chief operating officer of HipCricket, Kirkland, WA.

Per HipCricket, there is a tremendous opportunity for advertisers targeting Hispanic consumers on mobile. The number of Hispanics responding to text-message ads has gone up 20 percent in the past year.

HipCricket's mobile marketing platform is permission-based, so consumers only receive text messages, alerts and the mobile interactions that they request.

"Our platform will help enable them to engage in a two-way factor with their listenership and help radio become more interactive," said Ivan Braiker, CEO of HipCricket.

This news comes on the heels of HipCricket's partnership with the Spanish Broadcasting System to introduce Spanish radio stations to HipCricket's Hispanic Mobile Marketing Network (see story).

HipCricket's Hispanic Mobile Marketing Network is estimated to reach more than 7 million Hispanic radio listeners with the addition of Spanish Broadcasting, a Hispanic media and entertainment company.

HipCricket targets leading Hispanic markets such as Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago and New York. Its reach now extends to 14 out of the top 15 Hispanic markets nationwide.

The company's Hispanic Mobile Marketing Network enables marketers to tap into and customize a media plan of Hispanic stations in the network and their audiences with a single buy.

The network features a family of Hispanic media properties to be leveraged by brand marketers to deliver targeted and interactive mobile marketing programs directly to the devices of opted-in mobile users. These mobile interactions are customized based on the consumer's preferences and demographic.

HipCricket claims to have delivered about 17,000 campaigns for customers including Clear Channel Radio, Premiere Radio Networks, Sandusky Broadcasting, NBC, Coca-Cola, Staples, Hershey's and Jameson. The company produces interactive campaigns through SMS, mobile Web/WAP and mobile advertising.

The mobile deal with Univision Radio is acknowledgment of the power of Hispanics, one of the fastest-growing ethnic groups nationwide. Hispanics are expected to be a $1.2 trillion market by 2010, a prospect not lost on marketers and advertisers.

"What's happened is it's really become front-and-center, that the big brands are honing down their focus on the Hispanic community," Mr. Braiker said.

"The Latino community over-indexes with mobile, so it's high on appeal to marketers," he said.

Mickey Alam Khan contributed to this story.