Backchannelmedia

Business Wire

Yankee Group today revealed that the global in-game advertising market, which generated $77.7 million globally in 2006, continues to develop at an exponential rate. By 2011, worldwide in-game advertising expenditures (fixed product placement/static ads and dynamic ads) will grow to $971.3 million.

According to the Yankee Group Report, Advertising and Games: 2007 In-Game Advertising Forecast, published today, new media is eclipsing traditional advertising media. Spending on traditional advertising media (television, newspapers, radio and magazines) grew $3.6 billion last year while spending on internet advertising grew $4.3 billion. As a result of the significant shift in advertising expenditures in new media, in-game advertising budgets and networks serving these ads are also growing. In addition, connected game devices are becoming the foundation on which providers build dynamic in-game insertion.

"As ubiquitous connectivity continues to reshape the media and entertainment landscape, media fragmentation and clutter are a result, making traditional advertising channels less effective," said Michael Goodman, director of digital entertainment in Yankee Group's Consumer Research group. "Advertisers are increasingly finding in-game advertising to be a greater investment value because of the variety of opportunities that exist in and around games. Video games represent an 'above the line' opportunity, which means that video games should be used to build brands and not as a call to action that distracts from the game play."

Additional key findings in this Yankee Group Report include:

Dynamically placed 2D ads will cannibalize static in-game ads, but fixed product placements will continue to grow through 2011.

The number of games with in-game ads will double annually through 2008.

In the near term, PC games will drive the market for dynamically served ads.

NOTE TO EDITORS

For interviews contact:

Michael Goodman, director of digital entertainment, 617-880-0317, mgoodman@yankeegroup.com

Christina Oh, Yankee Group public relations, 617-880-0238, coh@yankeegroup.com

YANKEE GROUP (www.yankeegroup.com)

The people of Yankee Group are the global connectivity experts™--the leading source of insight and counsel for builders, operators and users of connectivity solutions. For nearly 40 years, Yankee Group has conducted primary research that charts the pace of technology change and its effect on networks, consumers and enterprises. Headquartered in Boston, Yankee Group has a global presence including operations in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Asia-Pacific.