The cooperation is intended to allow advertisers to schedule in-game advertising by calendar as part of broader campaigns alongside television, online and print media. Massive will become involved earlier and more extensively in the development of EA productions. The longer-term objective is to expand advertising options by integrating current titles with the Massive network and adding new games during the agreement.
“EA firmly believes that dynamic in-game advertising is an important area with growth potential for our company and one of the many ways in which we are expanding the advertising market,” says Kathy Vrabeck, president of EA’s Casual Entertainment label. EA describes Massive as an important partner with global sales capacity and extensive experience in video-game advertising. “Our latest agreement gives advertisers unprecedented access to EA properties to reach young male players around the world,” says Massive general manager Cory Van Arsdale. The companies describe the multiyear partnership as evidence of the suitability of dynamic in-game advertising and its benefits for publishers and advertisers.
“In-game advertising has actually existed for as long as computer games,” says Martin Lorber, EA spokesperson in Germany. From the beginning, developers have tried to make virtual environments as realistic as possible. “What has changed through new developments is that advertisers can plan and control placements much more precisely,” Lorber says. Such advertising does not necessarily make sense in every game. “In-game advertising is certainly more relevant in sports games than, for example, fantasy role-playing games.”
Dynamic in-game advertising was still a relatively new trend, with advertisers particularly seeking better reach among men aged 18 to 34. Massive said this demographic included most video-game players while remaining difficult for advertisers to reach. Alongside the wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary, which handled advertising in games on the Xbox network, several similar providers had already become established in the US market. Sony had also recently announced plans to increase its activity in in-game advertising.
