MediaPost Article on Advergaming vs. In-Game Advertising

** Please note that this post reflects my personal views, not necessarily my company, IGA Worldwide**

It's been a while since I've posted as I've been traveling but I'm back now and read an article through Online Media Daily (MediaPost) on "Advergames Outscore In-Game Ads."  At a panel at OMMA conference here in New York City on Tuesday, a bunch of executives (mainly advergame company execs) discussed how brands can get into video game advertising space and the focus was primarily focused on advergaming for the following reasons:

• Doesn't require the same degree of coordination
• Distribute for free
• Advergames can build buzz

I'm going to argue this article.  It's a farce.  First of all, the panelists were mostly from advergaming companies so this immediately creates a bias.  I've personally worked on both advergames and in-game advertising (SIGA/DIGA) and can say that putting together an advergame is a headache.  Have you ever created a website for someone?  If you have, you know all the coordination that goes into that including sourcing of creative guidelines, assets, color approval, site logic, etc.  This all applies to advergames- UNLESS, you buy a "templated" advergame and re-skin it.

Re-skinning an advergame is just short of buying a templated website.  You're using a game that someone else is/has distributing as well... just with different colors and a logo.  Is that unique?  Another issue with advergames is that there is no barrier to entry.  Anyone can produce a simple game.  Advergames are a dime a dozen and are popping up all over the web and eventually, consumers will start getting the same game with different skins. 

Distribution:  There are only a handful of brands that drive traffic to a branded entertainment site that they own.  How are you going to drive the distribution of your advergame?  Give it out at trade-shows?  We all know how hard it is to synch in-store distribution to a marketing campaign... how often does that actually happen?  People say getting advergames "out" there is the simple part... distribution is never simple. 

In-game advertising (inclusive of dynamic and static) piggy backs on the game's distribution through traditional retail channels and digital.  The brand does not have to worry about the logistics of this - which is a big burden off their shoulders.  Since in-game advertising often occurs in retail based video games, there are a fixed amount of them, so space is finite.  This means that this space is premium space as it's fixed.  If we could create new games and have them traditionally distributed when we want them, then the space wouldn't be finite, thus, diluting the opportunity.

In-game advertising is a premium placement within a video game which gives highly targeted and contextual exposure to an advertiser in a hard to reach area:  the person's home.  Imagine someone playing a game and viewing your brand and message for hours.  It's a reality.  Not many advergames are as emmersive as Battlefield 2142.... oh wait, none.