MOBILE advertising hoardings provider Channel 3 UK has bought Securicor Datatrak's vehicle positioning system to keep track of its vans. Claiming the move will 'do something about the industry's unreliable image', Channel 3 says acquiring the system will prove to customers that their promotional vans really have travelled along agreed routes and have not just been parked and left for a time.

Channel 3's managing director Paul Sheridan said: 'Mobile media seems to have developed a credibility problem with some advertisers. It is certainly true that some companies are failing to honour their contracts. Vans which were supposed to be seen in areas agreed with the customer have just been left parked up all day. It is wasting customers' time and money and giving the rest of us a bad name.'

The company will use the Datatrak system to prove its integrity to its customers, which include the National Lottery, JD Sports and Yamaha. Customers will be able to receive regular reports showing the roads taken by advertising vans, when they arrive at particular sites and how long they stay.