Before watching the film, viewers will be asked to download ad-supported video download software and provide anonymous demographic information, such as age range and sex, to enable the software to select ads that are most suited to the user.
The ad breaks will be placed in the film at three separate intervals and will last for up to one minute, featuring advertisements from companies including the AA, Norwich Union and the Territorial Army, among others.
The downloaded film will be available to the viewer for one month. Users can send the films to their friends via email and each time the film is viewed, different ads will be shown.
Antony Carbonari, BT Vision's interactive and commercial media director, said: "We believe that sympathetically-placed, targeted advertising, combined with a viral film-sharing capability, will be attractive to many customers in conjunction with free or reduced content prices. We look forward to the results."
'Mischief Night' is a comedy drama about two families who come together unexpectedly on a local night of carnival trickery and festivity. 'Played' is a gangster thriller based in London and 'The Punk Rock Movie' is a cult documentary film about punk rock in London in the late 70s.
Ariel Napchi, co-founder and co-chief executive of Hiro Media, which created the ad-supported download software, said: "The great unfulfilled vision of the internet is to leverage its distribution power and word-of-mouth capabilities, to provide entertainment fans with free and legal downloads that can be watched when and where they want."
Aegis Group has partnered with BT Vision for the trial and will be placing ads throughout the films from clients across its Vizeum, Carat and Diffiniti agencies.
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