EA signs up to dynamic advertising

Electronic Arts (EA), the world’s largest independent video games publisher has finally made the leap into dynamic advertising, signing deals with IGA Worldwide and Microsoft-owned Massive.

 The deal means the two in-game advertising networks will serve dynamic ads to EA games titles. Gamers who are playing titles online will see ad messages that are updated and altered to ensure they are contextually relevant to geographic location and time zone.

 Frank Sagnier, vice-president for online and strategic relationships for EA in Europe, says the publisher aims to build "a detailed strategy to deliver advertising in a seamless format".

 "Consumers are increasingly gaming in deep, virtual worlds and advertisers need adapted ways to reach these audiences. We are continually looking at how to bring more connected experiences and services to consumers, and working with a network like IGA is a start to building this dimension of our business," says Sagnier.
IGA Worldwide chief executive Justin Townsend says EA’s move into dynamic in-game ads is significant. He adds: "EA’s strategic commitment to the space is one that many leading advertisers have been waiting for, and no advertiser should even think about building a comprehensive marketing campaign without considering in-game advertising as a key component of their overall advertising spend."    

In-game advertising has attracted much interest this year after Microsoft bought into the sector with its acquisition of Massive in April this year. In-game advertising is expected to grow five-fold from $56m (£29m) in 2005 to $732m (£384m) by 2010, according to Yankee Group.