Video Game Ads to Reach $1.0 Billion

With all of the focus given to in game ads and gamers and publisher reactions to the growing trend, not much time is spent looking at the numbers. Not surprisingly, as in game ads and advergames become increasingly and increasingly popular, spending on these ads will continue to grow. According to an article in AdWeek, spending on video game forms of advertising will reach $1 billion by the year 2012. Additionally, most of that money will be spent on casual online games, instead of the dynamic ads found in PS3 and XBOX 360 titles.

These projections represent a change from last year, where 59% of the 550 million spent was on in game ads, while about 41% was spent on advergames. Despite the fact that console titles are selling faster than other, this report holds fast that spending will be redirected away from the consoles and into the online sector. Casual online games are also growing at a tremendous rate, and it is easier to implement on games online instead of consoles, because not all console gamers are playing their games online.

4 years seems like a short time for such a rapid growth in game advertising, yet based on sales from the past year videogames are clearly becoming more mainstream. The success of the Nintendo Wii is evidence that there are plenty of casual gamers out there who are looking for a fun experience. It makes sense that advergames will be the future of game advertising as it is not only cheaper to make the ads, yet easier to make the games free. Free gaming is a big motivation when individuals choose to play a game or not. Currently advertisements in console titles have no impact on the consumer price, which can be almost frustrating. On the world wide web though advertisers have already proven ways to deliver free content in exchange for the advertising, which again is why it makes sense that most of the advertising budgets should be spent there.

In Defense of In Game Ads

When Game studio Gearbox recently inked a deal with ad company Double Fusion to explore ads in future titles, the deal was not viewed as negative. Yet that didnt stop the backlash from anti-ad gamers from making comments along the lines of in game ads are ruining games. In response, Gearbox Studio President Randy Pitchford posted in his blog expressing that the deal will not devalue upcoming projects. Gearbox Software is responsible for titles such as Brothers in Arms and Borderlands.


According to his entry, Pitchford acknowledge that some advertisers do use advertisements irresponsibly which harm games and ruin the experience. He urged readers however not to judge Gearbox solely based on the advertisers which use ads irresponsibly. He also added the the deal did not have specifics concerning upcoming titles, only that Double Fusion could contact Gearbox with a proposal. Any possible proposal Pitchford added would only add value to the game, not take away from it.


I like that a game studio president is taking the time to post in his blog and address the fears that gamers have about upcoming projects. Clearly he was paying attention to what gamers were worried about and make positive efforts to reduce their anxiety. While clearly many angry gamers will remain skeptical, Pitchford did what a good president would do by making these statements in his blog. I believe that in game ads can be done responsibly and effectively, and I am confident that Gearbox who have made great games in the past, will bring the same quality to their future titles.

Ads for Spys

The effectiveness of ads in games for brand awareness has yet to be seen, yet that hasnt stopped many big brands from investing in this young new media outlet. More interestingly it turns out that other organizations have also been experimenting with virtual advertising, including the British government. GCHQ, a branch of british intelligence, is looking to attract tech saavy recruits by placing ads in games such as Splinter Cell: Double Agent.

GCHQ, which stands for the Government Communication Headquarters, believed the ads would reach an "Internet-savvy generation of graduate groups." The campaign was handled by Massive Inc., the in game ad company controlled by Microsoft. Ads appeared in different games as well including Need for Speed Carbon and Enemy Territory: Quake Wars.

It is no suprise that a government agency is willing to invest advertising money into videogames. After all, government PSAs can currently be seen on TV and heard on the radio, so why not turn to videogames as a way to send out a message. The medium also provides the GCHQ with a unique, select target audience which they wish to reach. They are interested in individuals who are tech saavy, so why not target gamers who spend their time playing console and computer games. It would be interesting to see how effective these wanted ads actually were, but i would be willing to bet they were more effective than we would think.

Standards for Measuring In Game Ads

TV advertisements have Nielsen, Magazine advertisements have the Audit Bureau of Circulations, yet at this time there is no structure in place to adequately measure the value of in game ads, which presents a problem for the industry. According to a panel at MI6, it is one of the largest obstacles facing the advertising sector.

Andy Swanson of Ubisfot discussed the importance of consistency in measuring advertisements that can be used to compare different values of different ads. He added, "When a person looks at a billboard in a game, what is the value of that. How long do they need to look at the ad to validate that as a buy?" The Head of Gaming at AT&T Entertainment Services Glenn Broderick wanted an "apples to apples" comparison, which would allow media buyers to compare the value of a video game ad to established media such as TV and print. This notion was further established when Dean Martin, a media buyer, explained that advertisers are afraid of the gamble they take when they buy in game ads, because the risk is lower buying from established forms.

Developing a system for measuring video game ads effectiveness wont be simple. Aside from the fact that there are gamers who will simply ignore the ads, there is also no way of knowing how many individuals play a given game. Friends share game, people buy and sell used games on ebay or through outlets like gamestop. The truth of the matter is however that the systems in place for TV and magazines aren't entirely reliable either. With services like Tivo consumers can skip commercials and those who surf the web have become numb to banner ads. When a system is put into place to measure the effectiveness of video game ads there is no guarantee that it will be as useful as those who want it hope for.

Optional In Game Ads

NCsoft, publishers of such online games like Guild Wars and City of Heroes has just signed a deal with Double Fusion, a maker of in game ads. The deal hopes to bring in game advertisements to the franchise City of Heroes, but there is a catch. According to the story, the publisher is making plans to include a free option that will allow gamers to turn of the ads. What is interesting here isnt so much the fact that the ads are being included in the game, yet the idea that they can be turned off, especially for free, by the individual.

The reasoning for bringing ads to the City of Heroes franchise is to create more realism in it's modern urban setting. With that said, the ads will also help to provide revenues to help furthur develop the MMO. Any gamer who chooses that they do not want the ads will have the option to turn them off, no strings attached. As an iteresting note, the same technology being used for creating these flexible ads, will also be used to help bring user create content into the game.

I like the idea that NCsoft and Double Fusion are willing to give users the options to turn off the ads within the game. In my experience I have never thought that ads were over invasive and disrupted the game experience( Fight Night Round 3 was pretty close). Nevertheless, there are those who are strictly against advertising in games and this option suits them well. For the most part it seems to me that players of the game will find the ads either do indeed bring realism to the game, or more likely be neutral towards their addition. In either scenario it is unlikely the user will opt to turn them off simply because if they do not ruin the game experience, then there is no logical reason to do so.