In-Game ads rule

Most video-gamers react positively to in-game ads - some 82% say the games are just as enjoyable with such ads as without them - according to a study conducted by Nielsen BASES and Nielsen Games on behalf of in-game advertising network IGA Worldwide.

Moreover, integrating dynamic advertisements into videogame environments provides brands a measured lift in consumer awareness and opinion of the products players are exposed to during gameplay, the Nielsen study found (via Wired).

There was, post-play, a 61% increase on average in consumers’ favorable opinions of products advertised in-game, according to the “Consumers’ Experience with In-Game Content & Brand Impact of In-Game Advertising Study.”

“With young adults now spending on average six hours a week gaming, advertisers should be excited at how well their messages were embraced and the brands positively perceived,” said Justin Townsend, CEO of IGA Worldwide.

Select findings from the study:

There is an average 44% increase in post-game aided recall from pre-awareness.
Positive brand attribute association increased 33% across all brands.
Of consumers with the strongest opinion about in-game ads, both positive and negative, over 70% felt the ads made them feel better about the brand, feel more favorable toward the brand, make them more interested in the brand, and believe the ads are for innovative/cutting edge brands.
Over 60% of these most opinionated consumers feel the ads catch their attention, make games more realistic, do not interrupt the game experience, and are promoting relevant products.
In-game ad exposures with a duration over two seconds, as they are measured in IGA’s in-game ad methodology, generates on average an almost 30% increase in key ad metrics, including ad noticeability (100%), recall (42%), and fit (27%), vs. ad exposures with a duration of less than one second.
Videogame advertising is poised to grow to a $2B global industry by 2012, according to eMarketer, making games the fastest-growing major advertising medium.