Well it was bound to happen sooner or later, but the MMA is putting its final touches on a new set of guidelines aimed at Bluetooth-based marketing in Europe.

Since the debate has raged on for a long time over what is right and wrong when it comes to Bluetooth marketing as well as proximity marketing as a whole, the MMA introduced the new set of rules aimed to “reference framework for any company using Bluetooth marketing, and are the result of discussions between operators, content providers, advertising agencies, brands and technology firms.”

The guidelines cover almost every aspect of Bluetooth marketing, including the delivery, types of content, permission-based attributed, as well as proposed legislation. It’s all aimed solely at the European market, for now, but ultimately as other parts of the world realize the benefits of the Bluetooth marketing, the guidelines will already be in place to regulate any future offerings.

While the MMA is focusing on Bluetooth at the moment, they’ve already stated that it will expand to wi-fi, Near-Field Communications (NFC) and location-based services as well.

“Bluetooth has several clear advantages that make it an attractive way to distribute content but must have consistent deployments,” says Laura Marriott, MMA President. “As with other forms of mobile marketing communication, it is important to provide guidelines that ensure a positive user experience.”

The MMA is holding public consultation until September 26th to get any feedback related to the proposed guidelines, and will release a finalized version for late October. I would venture to guess the new guidelines won’t change many aspects of those who are using Bluetooth marketing in the right way, meaning proper permission and opt-in processes, and will instead move the industry in the right direction and keep any future offerings in line with other mobile marketing channels such as SMS.